Mallon Tree Service planting 'arboriculture' seeds in area, by Steve Ehle

Kyle and Emma Mallon, husband and wife duo of Mallon Tree Service
 www.mallontreeservice.com

 Family-owned business has roots in 
Stoughton/Evansville/Cooksville communities

South central Wisconsin, with its array of tree and other plant species -- and obvious seasonal changes -- can be an arborist’s playground or a major challenge. For Kyle and Emma Mallon it’s both. But that’s what makes it fun. The Mallons, owners of Mallon Tree Service, LLC, of Cooksville, WI, recently relocated to northwestern Rock County, after plying their trades in the Milwaukee area.

Mallon Tree Service is a Wisconsin born and bred, small, family-owned business. Kyle Mallon has been an arborist in the public and private tree industry in Southern Wisconsin for over 10 years. 

Emma has roots in Evansville, Stoughton and Cooksville. “Kyle’s experience with, and passion for, trees is the backbone and drive of our honest and hardworking company,” Emma Wilde Mallon says. “With us, ‘What you see is what you get.’” Kyle “calls the shots” and “will be on location all the time, every time, you call MTS. He gives the free estimates, plans the work and executes it until the last leaf is raked,” Emma says.

Emma’s father, Jonathan (a well-known wildlife artist) grew up in nearby Evansville and her grandfather, internationally known artist John Wilde, lived near Cooksville. Emma and Kyle now reside in Emma’s grandfathers and step-grandmother’s (Shirley Wilde) house just east of Cooksville, about seven miles south of Stoughton and 25 miles southeast of Madison. Kyle, a Milwaukee native, is a certified arborist. Emma is a UW-Wisconsin Madison graduate with a degree in Journalism.

The young couple brings nearly a decade of experience in arboreal management to the area. After just a few months establishing themselves and their business in the Cooksville/Evansville/Stoughton/Edgerton area, Mallon Tree Service has already landed a number of jobs. Mallon Tree Service has 24/7 emergency services and offers the following services:

* Tree and shrub pruning and removals

* Tree preservation and plant health care

* Emerald Ash Borer treatment and prevention

* Tree planting, future plant management

* Tree cabling and bracing

* Firewood splitting and stacking

So, what is an “arborist”?

Kyle: “An arborist is an individual trained in the art and science of planting, caring for, and maintaining individual trees. Arborists are knowledgeable about the needs of trees and are trained and equipped to provide proper care.”

Mallon Tree Service (MTS) was established in 2010 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. At the time Kyle was employed full time as an arborist for American Tree Experts in New Berlin, WI. Kyle took a liking to tree work from the start, and graduated in short order from being a grounder, to a crew leader in the private sector, to leading a training crew for the City of Milwaukee Forestry Department.

While working full time for others, Kyle began to love the idea of being his own boss. Friends and family would ask for his advice when it came to their beloved trees and he began to spend his off hours working, even when he was off the clock. 

In 2010, after he felt he had enough experience to go it alone in the trees, Kyle established his own tree service. MTS utilizes both a 55-foot bucket truck to provide these services, as well as a rope and saddle to gently limb trees when large equipment is rendered useless by uncontrollable circumstances.

Kyle: “Proper tree care is an investment that can lead to substantial returns. Well cared for trees are attractive and can add considerable value to your property. Poorly maintained trees can be a significant liability. Pruning or removing trees, especially large trees, can be dangerous work. Tree work should be done only by those trained and equipped to work safely in trees.”

Traditionally, arborists have the knowledge and practice of safely climbing trees with a rope and saddle to effectively tend to the health and longevity of your trees, Kyle explains. This is something that he both enjoys and excels at, making him an expert in caring for your trees in the best way possible for each individual situation, with or without heavy-duty machinery.

Kyle was born and bred in Milwaukee. Eventually he learned landscape construction afar in Southern California and back home with Wisconsin DNR trail maintenance. During this time he graduated from Carthage College with a degree in Criminal Justice, and to a certain extent baseball, in 2004 and from MATC (Madison College) with an Associate's Degree in Fire Science in 2006.

Shortly after, an opportunity arose to be trained by the City of Milwaukee Urban Forestry Department. After five months of training he was selected as the top student of his crew and recruited by American Tree Experts (ATE). With ATE, Kyle was to continue his training in arboriculture, with an emphasis on residential properties. This emphasis taught him the art of estimates, bidding and building interpersonal relationships with homeowners.

As Kyle’s love for arboriculture grew, he was inspired to start performing tree work on his own, during off hours, under the title Mallon Tree Service, LLC. Eventually, he was hired on by the City of Milwaukee's Forestry Department as an Urban Forestry Specialist. He was to work with the City of Milwaukee until the summer of 2015 when his private business reached such a level of success that he was not able to maintain full time status. With the purchase of his own large-scale equipment and relocation to Evansville, he has been running his own tree care business ever since.

The reason Kyle wound up in the Evansville-Stoughton area is a result of his wife’s lineage. Emma Mallon was born in the Stoughton Hospital and attended Kegonsa Elementary School in Stoughton when she was just a little girl. Her parents, and indeed grandparents, are from Evansville, and though she has moved around quite a bit in her adult life she considers this idyllic agricultural hub, home.

Kyle and Emma were blessed with the opportunity to move to Emma’s grandparents, John and Shirley Wilde’s home near Cooksville when they were no longer able to care for it. Seeking a life in the great outdoors, the Mallon’s were happy to adapt to the country life with their dogs, cat and chickens.

Emma is Mallon Tree Services’ office manager, organizer and assistant on the ground when out in the field. You will often see her dragging brush, raking and attempting to keep up with Kyle and co-worker, Matt Mueller.

Mallon Tree Service cares for a broad service area encompassing all of Southeastern Wisconsin, with an emphasis on Evansville and Stoughton. MTS is fully insured on every job. 

Kyle working from a "cherry picker"

Emma: “We have an extensive list of equipment, including but not limited to our 55-foot bucket truck, dump truck, large chipper, dump trailer, variety of chainsaws, hand saws, ropes, carabineers, saddles, and our personal protective equipment, like helmets, ear muffs and plugs, gloves, chaps, safety glasses and cones.

Kyle: “We believe in preserving the sustainability and longevity of our Wisconsin forests. Whenever possible, we would opt to preserve a tree by pruning or treating instead of removing.

“Trees provide critical environmental benefits, ranging from combating climate change to cleaning the air, providing oxygen, cooling us in the summer, saving water by thwarting soil erosion, preventing water pollution, providing food and wood, marking the change of the seasons, and increasing property values.“

Kyle believes “we should be very concerned” about Emerald Ash Borer infestation. He’s seen it migrate, destroying all Ashes in its path, from Canada through Michigan and into Wisconsin. “The effect of this invasive beetle is catastrophic for our canopies, considering Ash is so prevalent in Southern Wisconsin,” he says.

He recommends treating any Ash on your property that you would hope to preserve as soon as possible. He believes any standing Ash is probably already infected, but may be able to be saved when proper attention is paid. He advises treating with Triage, a systemic insecticide, which can be injected into your tree and is the most effective control method of EAB.

“Though pricey, it is the most potent option for the survival of your Ash,” Kyle explains. “A less expensive treatment is Bayer’s 12 Mo Tree and Shrub Protect and Feed II and may be found at your local hardware store.”

When you complete a job, where do you dispose of the wood, chips?

Emma: “We dispose of the wood chips at one of two places. One, at our property where we use them to make wooden paths through the woods, as well as for composting. We are interested in the benefits of a permaculture system, and would like to do more to utilize wood chips as soil builders, for long term benefit.

“Secondly, we donate our wood chips to the Doudlah’s, our neighbors, who are organic farmers and who use them to much the same ends as we do.”

For Arbor Day this year, MTS recently helped plant a Burr Oak in the Cooksville Commons near the Cooksville Community Center.

Emma:  “We’d like to build a reputation in Southeastern Wisconsin as a go to trustworthy, safe and respectable tree service. We intend to stay small and local, with an emphasis on benefiting from and Bolstering up the community we feel so grateful to be a part of.”

On the job in Cooksville, WI

For more information, contact Mallon Tree Service at (262) 385-0581 or mallontreeservice@gmail.com for free estimates or more information.