Front & Center: Joe Zubaly climbed his way into business

One of arborist Joe Zubaly’s crews was performing routine maintenance on Whitworth University’s north Spokane campus when last fall’s windstorm plowed through the region.

“My guys called the office and said they had to seek safety in a parking lot because trees were falling all around them,” Zubaly recalled. “They sat there for 45 minutes as two dozen trees around them hit the ground, sounding like thunder. It was just nuts.”

Once the danger had passed, Zubaly teased his workers, “You didn’t film it? Are you crazy? That would have been a great YouTube video!”

The Nov. 17 windstorm was the largest tree-failure event in Spokane’s history, Zubaly said – “larger than the (November 1996) ice storm by far.”

During a recent interview, the owner of Northwest Plant Health Care discussed why some trees toppled and others didn’t, what homeowners should do in the windstorm’s wake, and why his own tree-climbing days are behind him.

S-R: Where did you grow up?

Zubaly: In Pennsylvania, just outside of Philadelphia.

S-R: What were your interests?

Zubaly: I was a drummer. I was also into science and played sports, but I thought I wanted to be a musician.

S-R: You know the joke about what you say when a drummer knocks on your door? “How much do I owe you for the pizza?”

Zubaly: (laugh) That’s very funny.

S-R: What was your first job?

Zubaly: Dipping ice cream when I was 18.

S-R: Then what?

Zubaly: I was a good musician, but not good enough. So I took a year off, then went to West Chester University and got a BS in psychology. I thought doing research would be cool. But you have to hang out with professors, and I didn’t really like those guys.

S-R: Did you have any interest in wood, beyond its usefulness as drum sticks?

Zubaly: No. But I was a rock climber, so after I graduated I answered a newspaper ad for a tree climber. I figured hanging off the end of a rope with a chain saw was pretty cool, and that’s how I got into the industry.

S-R: Did you know anything about tree pruning when you started?

Zubaly: No, nothing. The business owner – one of the youngest certified arborists in Pennsylvania – taught me. And I really enjoyed it. I thought climbing trees was the best job in the world.

S-R: And you gradually came to appreciate the trees as much as the climbing?

Zubaly: Yes, I started loving trees, so studied to become a certified arborist.

S-R: What brought you to Spokane?

Zubaly: After working for a couple of companies on the East Coast, I got married, and my wife and I spent our honeymoon traveling the country in an RV, looking for a place to live.

S-R: Why did you choose Spokane?

Zubaly: We liked the beauty of the place, and the size. I’d gotten job offers in Denver, Portland, San Francisco and Phoenix, but they all felt too big.

S-R: How do Spokane’s trees compare with Pennsylvania’s?

Zubaly: Spokane’s are small. People in Pennsylvania have been growing trees for 300 years. Down the road from us was Brandywine Battlefield where, when we pruned some sycamores one Arbor Day, we stood on limbs Washington hung his tents from to dry out.

S-R: Did you start your own company right away?

Zubaly: No. I worked for another guy for a year, climbing trees. Then I suggested we start a spray division, using chemicals and fertilizer to care for trees like I did back East. When I told him it would cost $10,000 or $12,000, he wasn’t interested. So I offered to start a side business, service his customers and pay him a 10 percent commission. That was the beginning of Northwest Plant Health Care.

S-R: Did you have any business background?

Zubaly: No, but my wife studied marketing at Penn State.

S-R: Were you successful from the start?

Zubaly: We grew slowly, but that was OK. Instead of incurring a bunch of debt, we bought old trucks and fixed them up. Within a year, I was able to quit my climbing job and do this full time.

S-R: Did the recession affect your business?

Zubaly: Oh, yeah. We had to lay people off and cut others’ pay. But we’ve been successful ever since.

S-R: When are you busiest?

Zubaly: April, May and June. The slowest months are normally December and January.

S-R: What do you like most about your job?

Zubaly: I really like being able to employ people and help them take care of their families. A lot of $12-an-hour employees – which is where mine start – have marginal lifestyles. It’s nice to help them get beyond that. I also love caring for trees.

S-R: Were certain trees more vulnerable to windstorm damage?

Zubaly: The two species we saw fall down were ponderosa pine and blue spruce. The spruce, in particular, is a very dense-canopied tree, so wind doesn’t move through it – it pushes into it. The soil beneath trees was another significant factor in determining which ones blew over and which didn’t. Whitworth and the cemeteries along Government Way have very sandy soil, which contributed to their incredible tree loss.

S-R: Most deciduous trees were spared. Was that because they had already shed their leaves?

Zubaly: Yes. If they still had their leaves, we would have seen more damage. A lot, lot more.

S-R: Some trees lost their tops. Will they survive?

Zubaly: They’ll be fine. Structurally they won’t be the same, and the break should be pruned to minimize future decay. But there’s no reason to think a tree will die because it lost a few feet of its top.

S-R: How about a tree that survived, but now leans?

Zubaly: If you’re worried, hang a plumb bob off it, and each month measure the distance between the plumb bob and the ground. If the distance doesn’t change, you’re fine. If the distance shrinks, you should worry.

S-R: Can you look at a leaning tree and make an on-the-spot recommendation?

Zubaly: I can. I charge new customers a $75 consultation fee, but if I do work in excess of $250 on their property, I waive the fee.

S-R: Looking back, can you recall any favorite customer reactions?

Zubaly: One lady sent us a check along with a note that read, “Wonderful work. Ridiculously expensive.” (laugh) I’ve always said I want to be the most expensive tree service in town, because I know at that point I’ll be able to provide for my employees and their families, and we’ll be able to stay in business and keep moving forward.

S-R: You got into this business for the thrill of climbing trees. When was the last time you climbed one?

Zubaly: A couple of years ago. One reason I quit was back problems.

S-R: Is it a physically demanding job?

Zubaly: Yeah, but don’t tell my guys. (laugh) They come back to the yard with a smile on their faces, and I want to keep it that way.

This interview has been condensed. If you’d like to suggest a business or community leader to profile, contact Michael Guilfoil at mguilfoil@comcast.net.