Swapped my climbing spikes for a bucket truck on residential jobs

I used to spike every tree I climbed for pruning work. After 8 years of doing it that way I figured it was fine. Then a customer pointed out the spike marks on his oak last spring and asked what they were. Felt like a total jerk. Switched to a bucket truck for trimming jobs under 60 feet and my wound closures look way better now. Plus I can reach more branches without fighting my saddle. Only downside is the truck payment. Has anyone else made this switch and noticed trees healing faster?

2 comments

2 Comments

veraramirez2d ago

Did you ever notice how much cleaner cuts look when you're not dragging spikes through the bark first? I used to be one of those guys who swore spikes didn't hurt the tree that bad. Thought it was just cosmetic damage and the tree would seal over fine. But once I started watching videos of proper pruning without spikes and saw how fast those cambium layers grow back clean, I felt pretty dumb. The bucket truck lets me be way more careful with my cuts too since I'm not swinging around trying to balance. It's not cheap but neither is replacing a tree that dies from all those spike wounds getting infected over the years.

emma_ramirez2d ago

Oh man, same thing happened to me a few years back. I switched to a bucket for anything under 50 feet and my pruning cuts healed way cleaner, plus I can actually see what I'm doing instead of fighting my lanyard. It hurt my wallet at first but watching those old spike scars on my clients trees still look rough after three years made it worth it.