John Davey mastered agriculture under the tutelage of his father, the superintendent of a large farm, after which he served a six-year apprenticeship in horticulture, floriculture, and landscape architecture in Torquay.

He subsequently launched a landscape and greenhouse business in Warren, Ohio, and then, in 1880, founded The Davey Tree Expert Company in nearby Kent.

Available for $1, it became the comprehensive resource for those interested in tree and landscape preservation, and featured a multitude of descriptive photographs to enhance understanding, a rarity in Davey's day.

A prolific speaker on the Chautauqua circuit, John Davey would often waive his fee if the audience would promise to plant the seed packet that he had distributed at the beginning of the discourse.

For example, in 1920, he received acclaim from such clients as The White House, The Naval Academy, and innovators and entrepreneurs Thomas Edison, John D. Rockefeller and William Wrigley.

He thus became an early advocate of proper pruning techniques, including an angled cut to conform to a tree's natural physiological processes.

Davey observed that hollow trees often fell victim to wounds beginning as an exterior callous and inflicting decay inwardly on either side of the cavity.

In response, he invented a cavity-filling process to replace the supporting surface artificially and to induce the callus to heal naturally over the face of the cavity.

To preserve these trees, such as stately elms, Davey invented steel bracing and cabling methods that served as protection from the stress and strain associated with heavy winds and storms.

The 4-foot- (1.2 m)square, 4-foot (1.2 m)-deep station featured one side of polished plate glass with a unique subterranean vantage point, allowing Davey to view and directly study tree root growth.

This cutting edge training facility was staffed by experts and dedicated to providing Davey employees with the skill and tools needed to advance the science.

As part of the science of tree surgery, John Davey patented the method allowing for the bracing of two branches to avoid further splitting where a wound existed at the base.

The mechanical apparatus consisted of a chain link device with hook bolts and a shank at either end, allowing the tied branches to move as a unit rather than through separate, divisive forces.

This process, pioneered and patented by John Davey, helped preserve and revitalize injured and/or dying trees through a method akin to surgery.

The tree cavity was first coated with molten tar, and a drainage system installed, and a waterproof covering added to ensure sustained vitality.