Cubing educational experience

Describe it-
About 5 years ago a friend of mine got me a job working with a landscaping crew that specializes in pruning. The members of this small team new all about arbiculture and were very experienced. I knew very little about this line of work, but my fellow co-workers decided to teach me. They had been enrolled in classes related to this line of work and were very educated. The team put me through a few classes in Seattle and Bainbridge Island where I learned the basics of becoming a arborist. They taught you how to shape a tree or shrub and what shape the tree or shrub would best respond to. The classes taught how to prune fruit trees to encourage better fruit production. How to thin out trees/shrubs; ridding deadwood, which pushes the plants energy into the live growth. There are numerous tips and methods that were taught within these classes. Most of my experience of becoming a pruner/arborist however came from working on the field. I got a lot of hands on experience by working closely with my co-workers.

Analyze it-
A arborist is usually a very visual person. They have a good idea of what they want to do before beginning to prune a tree. They can visualize a finished project in their head. A arborists uses a few tools that help prune a tree or shrub. Pruners are your most important tool, along with a hand saw and extended pull saw/pruners.

Compare it-
A arborists can be compared to a everyday gardener. Some people enjoy working in a yard of their own and teach themselves how to maintain healthy trees. I have worked at a few houses where the owner had showed me a few shrubs they had pruned on their own; to my surprise they had been done correctly and looked great.

Apply it-
Now that I have spent 5 years working as a pruner/arborist I have made great use of my new skill. I enjoy working in my own yard. I have also obtained a few side jobs, for example, Once a year around February I help a client prune their fruit orchard. They appreciate someone who knows what they are doing, resulting in a great finished product.