Meet Beck Aurell

Beck Aurell is self-admittedly obsessed with trees and plants. She is an accomplished arborist with a breadth of experience, including Treemasters in Stockholm, The Tree Company in Melbourne, All Green Tree Care in Halifax and Asplundh in Nova Scotia.

Becky sits on a couch with two dogs.

More recently, she has been tending trees with Laird Tree Care on Prince Edward Island where she lives with her partner, Rachel, who is a talented journalist. (Rachel actually wrote a piece about Beck’s experiences in this non-traditional occupation which appeared recently in the Toronto Star)

Rachel and Becky stand by a misty cliff.
Rachel (left) and Beck (right).

When she isn’t climbing trees, Beck can be found digging in her garden or foraging for wild edible plants to use in delicious experiments (a standout: lilac bread). She and her dad, Kevin Anderson, are known to cook new recipes together via video chat even while in different provinces. The pair recently cured a beautiful salmon fillet, which some Woodpecker Tree Care staff were able to enjoy before a day’s work.

A pen and ink drawing of a ginko branch. Artist Beck Aurell.

Beck is interested in all forms of flora, and often creates detailed botanical drawings in her spare time. Her experience with the outdoors shows in her artistic endeavours, as the smallest details are captured with dedicated precision.

12-year-old Becky splits wood with her father, Kevin, who is wearing a hard hat and sticking his tongue out at her.
Beck and her father, Kevin, splitting wood. At 12 years old, Beck decided to sell kindling by the side of the road.
A young Becky sits on a fallen tree in winter.

Beck spent most of her childhood in the woods, and was known to perch among the branches for hours at a time.

In her adulthood, she was the first woman to ever enter the Atlantic Regional Tree Climbing Competition (2016) and represented the Atlantic Provinces at the 2017 International Tree Climbing Competition in Washington.

A young Beck sits in a tree wearing pajamas and a winter coat.

Beck helps us out with occasional larger jobs and we’re looking forward to when she can come back on a more regular basis. The team appreciates her passion for problem-solving, learning, and detail-oriented care.

Young Beck holds a chickadee in her palm with birdseed. It is winter outside.

Find pictures of Beck in awesome “arb-action” here!