Davey Tree Acquires National Shade

KENT, Ohio – In a move to position itself as the largest tree moving company in North America, The Davey Tree Expert Co. acquired Houston, Texas-based National Shade.

Davey Tree currently moves trees as large as 10 inches in diameter from its Jacksonville, Fla., and Wooster, Ohio, locations. The acquisition of National Shade’s $4 to $5 million operation will allow Davey to move trees exceeding 60 inches in diameter throughout the United States and Canada.

“We have been the leader in tree care since 1880 and now with the acquisition of National Shade we clearly take the lead in the relocation of large trees," said Ken Celmer, senior vice president and general manager for Davey Tree residential and commercial services.

National Shade, which also has facilities in Fresno, Calif., will work with Davey’s 80-plus offices throughout North America to cross-market services to existing clients. David Cox, current president of National Shade, will remain on as the Davey district manager. “Adding the specialized equipment and experienced staff of National Shade to our extensive network of Davey operations will create exciting new business opportunities,” said Karl Warnke, president and chief operating officer of Davey Tree. As a result of the acquisition, National Shade will now be called National Shade, a Davey Co.

The author is Managing Editor of Lawn & Landscape magazine and can be reached at nwisniewski@lawnandlandscape.com.