Carl McClean; Project Manager
This month we are meeting Carl McClean, Project Manager for Tree Research Ltd.
Carl started out life in the landscape industry aged just 16 and whilst working for a landscaping company at home in Ireland, he was well and truly bitten by the industry bug. He went on to study Landscape and Amenity Management and in the subsequently decade has worked in roles across the industry doing everything from training horticultural apprentices on community gardening schemes to managing a multi-million pound redevelopment project as Park Manager for North Tyneside Council. Under Carl’s direction the Park went on to gain successive Green Flag Awards and as if that wasn’t enough, he then also took on managing a 400 acre country park and outdoor education service.
Carl is someone who wants to bring about change and I suppose it was therefore inevitable that having been instrumental in creating an award winning Park and Education service, he was going to hand the reins to someone else whilst he sought out his next challenge.
Carl relocated over 300 miles to find his next role and now works for Tree Research Ltd, an innovative and unparalleled company renowned for sourcing, supplying, planting and aftercare of mature trees and topiary.
True to form, Carl boasts a role where saying “it can’t be done” is rarely an option. He works alongside Charlie Noton and a team of specialists whose knowledge and expertise of trees mean that they can successfully complete projects that other companies simply can’t.
To give you an idea of the kind of work Tree Research do, Carl recently completed a project which entailed manually handling 8 large beech topiary (each around 750kg each) within a walled garden. The lack of access for machinery meant there was no room for error and just to add a little extra pressure, the garden was also open for NGS the following weekend. In a few weeks time Carl will be crane lifting 17 trees over an exclusive property in Bath and the following week landscaping a front garden with a 200 year old Cedar tree in Cardiff. In his words:
“My role is pretty varied – and I like it that way”
Trees play such a big part in the landscape and as such within landscape architecture and it’s clear Carl has an intrinsic understanding of this connection;
“The ability to plan a project from the start and see a tree established immediately is a real thrill. A lot of people have reservations about moving large trees but this sort of practice has been carried out for centuries. Humans have an ability to sculpt the landscape and create beautiful places that work alongside nature. It may not be referred to as fully ‘natural’, but neither is Stone Hedge, or Machhu Pichu, all forms of life change their environment. As long as it is carried out in a sensitive manner then it can be a wonderful thing.”
Carl’s connection to the natural world is more than just a day job, it’s a part of his soul. He is considered in his approach to nature and has an innate understanding of the sensitivities and vulnerabilities of our natural world but with an extraordinary attention to detail and knowledge of the landscape industry.
Here at Studio 31, it’s no secret we have an inherent love of trees and they are a key part of so many of our projects from private tree houses to our country estate work and so the opportunity to interview Carl was a personal treat for us. When we choose consultants or professionals to work with, we look at more than just their job title or credentials, we are looking for their broader understanding of our vision for the project and the client’s aspirations too. We are looking for an attention to detail and ethos similar to our own and Carl certainly embodies that. It’s clear that he doesn’t see his job as just moving trees but thinks of it in terms of design and the broader impact and contribution of that tree or trees to the landscape. He seems to understand the importance of design from a conservation and regeneration perspective as well as for personal and aesthetic pleasure and that broader understanding clearly feeds into the success of his work at Tree Research Ltd.
We will leave the last word on trees to him:
“I can’t image not working in this industry. I have an affinity with the outdoors and a genuine love of being involved in the creation of landscape; not just for visuals, but for people to experience. There is so much that we can’t really write down in terms of the effect different trees have on us as humans – their different characteristics – texture, stature, presence, movement…all of these connect emotionally to those who will allow themselves to experience it.”
There’s not really much more to say than that is there?