Note: This information was updated in November 2025. Contact the Program Coordinator for the most up-to-date information.
History
The Tree Care Advisor Program, founded in 1992, aids in the development of individual environmental stewards through education, community, and by promoting volunteerism. Tree Care Advisors are independent volunteers that find joy in supporting and enhancing our urban and community forests through local facilitation.
Purpose
Advisors fulfill volunteer roles as educators and facilitators, enabling the University of Minnesota, other State agencies, and community programs to more effectively help others help themselves.
Volunteers work primarily within and directly with their own community (with a few notable exceptions) and focus work on public land. If you are interested in volunteering on private land, contact the Program Coordinator for pre-approval.
Benefits
Advisors are trained by University of Minnesota and partner staff in an extended curriculum (“Core Course”) of tree identification, selection, pruning, mulching, diseases, answering community questions, and more. Advisors that reach a set number of hours may qualify for ongoing training discounts or Emeritus status. Advisors also:
- Receive invitations to ongoing continuing education opportunities and the Quarterly Newsletter,
- Have access to curated content and program information through the Tree Care Advisor Program Hub, and
- Become part of a dedicated network of volunteers helping to foster healthy, resilient trees and forests!
Qualifications and certification
Advisors are self-starters that are at least 18 years old (unless given signed parental consent) and comfortable working outside with minimal supervision (after training).
To become certified, Advisor trainees attend our Tree Care Advisor Core Course classes and pass all coursework. The class schedule typically consists of 1 evening class per week (online) for 8 weeks during the spring, as well as one day of hands-on education in-person at the UMN Urban Forestry Outreach & Research Nursery in St. Paul. Online courses are recorded so trainees can access them later for initial viewing and/or review. The course also includes two assignments. The entire course is approximately 20 class hours plus additional at-home work.
Ongoing commitment
During the training year, trainee volunteers complete and report at least 15 hours of volunteerism. In following years, volunteers complete and report a minimum of 25 hours of volunteerism and 4 hours of continuing education each year. (Volunteers must submit hours by 11:59 pm on December 31st for each year.) Volunteers can request a leave of absence or personal hardship exception by contacting the Program Coordinator.
Once trained, volunteers are expected to seek out and/or create their own opportunities to help local communities. (Note, this is a different approach than many other programs, e.g. Master Gardener.)
Volunteerism activities
It is important to understand what type of volunteer hours qualify for the Tree Care Advisor program. The approach of this program is such that you independently find and/or create opportunities that match your interests and skills with the needs of your community. (The Tree Care Advisor program itself does not offer many sign-up approach options.) To fulfill your hours, we ask that the opportunities you create and engage with:
- be centered in urban and community forestry,
- serve the public and/or community spaces of Minnesota, and
- be focused on trees, shrubs, and other woody plants.
Within these guidelines, you are empowered to find and create unique opportunities in your own community. This ensures your knowledge, interests, and skills sync up with local desires and circumstances.
There are many ways you may create your own projects. You are encouraged to fulfill roles as educators, advocates, facilitators, and changemakers to more effectively help others help themselves. You may choose to assist community or neighborhood forestry planning groups by conducting workshops, helping them prepare proposals, and reviewing their plans. You may also help the public with tree-related questions by providing information or directing them to resources. Another option is to perform on-the-ground field work for public spaces. As long as it has to do with tree care and is community-centered, the options are endless!
Examples
Here are a few more examples of how you may choose to connect with your community:
- Teaching & Presenting
- Helping the public with their tree-related questions by providing information and/or directing them to resources.
- Tabling at local events such as farmers markets, craft fairs, school fairs, etc.
- Conducting educational programs for youth groups, schools, neighborhoods, and community groups.
- Advising & Connecting
- Assisting community or neighborhood forestry planning groups by conducting workshops, helping prepare proposals, and reviewing plans.
- Serving on a local tree board or committee.
- Collaborating with other research-based programs (Master Naturalists, Master Gardeners, MN Water Stewards).
- Field Work
- Working alongside tree- and shrub-related organizations such as the MNDNR, Tree Trust, Great River Greening, and garden clubs.
- Partnering with local municipal staff to plant and maintain young trees.
- Resource Development
- Working independently or as part of a group to create research-based outreach materials for the community and/or other Tree Care Advisors to use. Contact the Program Coordinator for approval.
We also offer a very limited number of premade events to sign up for, such as the MN State Fair Ask a Tree Care Advisor Booth and occasional spring events. However, you should not rely on these events to fill your hours requirements.
Time behind the scenes
Time spent doing behind-the-scenes work also counts toward your hours. For instance, time spent researching answers to questions or developing solutions for your community, preparing educational materials, or planning meetings to set up new tree care programs all count.
Time spent navigating to and from volunteer work can also be reported. You are generously giving your time and energy to shuffle from place to place and we want to make sure you are compensated for your extra effort.
Information for volunteers associated with other UMN-sponsored organizations
If you volunteer with more than one nature- or gardening-based organization (e.g., Master Gardeners, Tree Care Advisors, Master Naturalists), we ask that you choose only one of the groups when reporting hours for an event.
Available resources
During the Core Course, new volunteers are given access to a wide range of education materials and signed up for the UFOR Tree Care Quarterly newsletter.
Once certified, new Tree Care Advisors have access to the online Program Hub and receive update emails from the Program Coordinator.
Dress code
Wear appropriate safety equipment at all times when doing tree work, this may include, but is not limited to protective eyewear, helmet, high visibility safety vest, etc.
No open-foot shoes when doing tree work.
No offensive clothing (e.g., too revealing, offensive graphics or words). Minnesota is home to many different cultures and people of different backgrounds. You are ambassadors of your community and our program. We ask you to be respectful at all times.
If you have a Tree Care Advisor shirt, please wear it as you see fit. Contact the Program Coordinator if you would like to order one.
Safety
There are a number of safety regulations in place for the safety of volunteers, residents, and the protection of surrounding infrastructure. Volunteers are expected to follow all of the regulations set by the Tree Care Advisor Program and by your city/county. If the Tree Care Advisor Program discovers that safety precautions are being disregarded by any volunteer, Tree Care Advisor status will be suspended. The volunteer will be immediately placed on temporary inactive status and may be placed on permanent inactive status following decisions made by the city/county contact and the program director.
- Volunteers must wear suitable clothing to protect themselves, including closed-foot shoes.
- Volunteers use best judgment to determine safety regarding weather.
- Volunteers may work within their comfort level for trained duties only while two feet are firmly on the ground. Pruning above that is prohibited. Any low hanging branches that require the attention of the city should be reported to the appropriate city/county/municipal contact. (Contact TCA Program Coordinator for guidelines for volunteers with different abilities, such as people using wheelchairs.)
- Never work on trees/branches within 10 feet of utility lines. Electricity can flow through branches, and other utilities like gas pipes can be very dangerous.
- Branches removed from the tree should be approximately 2 inches in diameter at the branch collar ridge or smaller. A good way to approximate this size is by wrapping a hand around the branch; it is the right size to remove if thumb and fingers touch. Anything larger may require a certified arborist.
- Minnesota State Statute Chapter 216 requires anyone who engages in any type of excavation (such as digging holes to plant trees) to provide advance notice of at least two working days to Gopher State One Call. You can visit www.gopherstateonecall.org and enter your dig information online, or you can dial 811 and speak to a phone representative. The service provided by Gopher State One Call to excavators is free of charge. The cost of Gopher State One Call is provided by Minnesota's underground facility operators.
- Volunteers report injuries or potentially dangerous situations (e.g., work within 10 feet of a utility line, large storm damaged branches) immediately to the proper local authority (or program contact if in doubt of who to contact)
- Never get on a ladder. If pruning cannot be done with both feet on the ground, do not do it.
- Volunteers are not allowed to operate chainsaws.
Sometimes you won’t be able to prune without stepping into the street. If you are on a street that is not busy, you may have a group member watch for cars while you make a proper cut. Use bright traffic cones and high-visibility vests.
When you are pruning, or others are pruning around you, make sure that you or others stand clear of the branch drop zone. Even small branches can injure a person.
Caution
Please remember that Tree Care Advisors are not professional arborists. If someone is in need of tree care work or has any kind of question involving liability, have them contact a certified arborist through https://www.treesaregood.org/ and/or their local city or county law offices.
Minimum age requirement
Participants in the Tree Care Advisor program must be 18 years or older, unless participation is confirmed with signed consent from a legal guardian.
Working with youth
If you would like to work with youth under the age of 18, contact the Program Coordinator.