History and scholarship
Systematic plant observation goes back to Theophrastus's Enquiry into Plants. Modern tree care rests on Alex Shigo's CODIT model (Shigo & Marx, 1977; Shigo, 1984, Annual Review of Phytopathology), which changed pruning and cavity practices. Manion (1981) explained decline diseases as chains of factors, and Agrios (2005) is the standard plant-pathology text. Korea is reported to have introduced the qualification around 2018.
Getting it
Candidates generally meet degree/experience criteria, complete training, then pass a written first stage and a written/practical second stage. Check notices. Requirements, subjects, credit and practicum rules, pass criteria and dates can change; always check the administering body's notice and current law.
Work and careers
Tree hospitals, apartment and park tree care, heritage trees and public pest control. Links to crop loss assessors and drone pilots.
FAQ
- Different from tree-care technician?
- Yes, a separate credential with a different scope.
- Non-majors?
- Eligibility rules apply.
Sources reviewed: 2026-10-26
References
- 국가법령정보센터. https://www.law.go.kr
- 한국임업진흥원. https://www.kofpi.or.kr
- 산림청. https://www.forest.go.kr
- Theophrastus. Enquiry into Plants (Historia Plantarum), trans. A. Hort (1916). Loeb Classical Library.
- Shigo, A. L., & Marx, H. G. (1977). Compartmentalization of Decay in Trees. USDA Forest Service, Agriculture Information Bulletin 405.
- Shigo, A. L. (1984). Compartmentalization: A conceptual framework for understanding how trees grow and defend themselves. Annual Review of Phytopathology, 22, 189–214.
- Manion, P. D. (1981). Tree Disease Concepts. Prentice-Hall.
- Agrios, G. N. (2005). Plant Pathology (5th ed.). Elsevier Academic Press.
- Spence, M. (1973). Job market signaling. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 87(3), 355–374.
- Collins, R. (1979). The Credential Society: An Historical Sociology of Education and Stratification. Academic Press.
- Abbott, A. (1988). The System of Professions: An Essay on the Division of Expert Labor. University of Chicago Press.