Today we’d like to introduce you to Pesky Pete Barron.
Pesky Pete, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I am a special educator by trade and started a small firewood business in 2005, I cut, split, delivered and stacked a cord or two at a time. As a huge outdoor enthusiast, and dog lover, I started cutting small trees for people at a huge discount then bring the wood home, hang outside with my dog, chop it, sell it, get a good workout while making a little money, business was going great. I would occasionally get a poison ivy rash from some of the wood that I brought home.
In 2010, my mom, showed me the rash she received from tending to her gardens and flower beds. It was pretty bad, she then explained how she had her yard chemically treated several times over the course of 8 years, resulting in a bad rash almost every year. She explained the process of the treatments: a call to a local landscaper where she was unable to get a quote over the phone, and was explained that there was a fee for an onsite inspection before an estimate could be given, about 15-20 minutes of spraying and an explanation that it would all be dead in a couple of days, a year later it would come back. Ultimately, she had heavy machinery scrape her yard and brought new loom, with some fancy landscaping plants in mulched beds. About a year later the poison crept back, from a shared area between two properties. Frustrated and with few options, she prepared to call for another chemical treatment. I offered to buy some over the counter poison ivy and weed killer. I started researching poison ivy and best treatments, when I found there was a really nice lady in southern NH pulling it out, Helaine Hughes, and a very famous man in CT, William Bartlett, I thought I would I would give it a try at my mothers and asked her if maybe she would buy me dinner. Armed with shovel and pick ax, I held my breath while placing each vine and leaf in a bag. A couple months later we found some had grown back, I dug it out and it did not grow back. She took me out to dinner, discussed why no one was offering this service in our area coupled with the shortcomings of chemical treatments and while we were out, I placed my first poison ivy removal ad on Craigslist. I am allergic to poison ivy, and received the rash 20 times or so my first year. Ha. I hold an A rating on Angie’s List, with 3 years running of Super Service Awards, a couple of five star reviews on my new Yelp account and yesterday, saw a fox being chased by crows in someone’s backyard adjacent to a conservation area.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The greatest struggles with the business are getting the rash, ticks, mosquitoes and the heat! I wear two layers of clothes, two shirts, one with a hood, two pairs of pants, long socks, two pairs of gloves and boots. When the weather gets over 80, it is an instant sweat box. The open pores from the sweat can have contact with the urushiol, the sap inside the plant, allowing it reach deep and the rash can be painful, as anyone knows. I have a very strict clean up routine to avoid the rash. I wear a hood for the bugs, no matter how hot it is, having the mosquitoes buzz around your ears can be distracting. A tick latches onto me once a month even with a tick check every day. With the right precautions and a good clean up routine, using plenty of water, dish soap and a cloth towel, anyone can loosen the earth and pull poison ivy!
The poison ivy removal business is a traveling business which comes with traffic and phone operators. I stay to the slow lane.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Pesky Pete’s Poison Ivy Removal story. Tell us more about the business.
From patch to pasture, Pesky Pete’s Poison Ivy Removal guarantees the removal of poison ivy from your property. Prevention is the intention. The method uses 2 spading forks, (the kind with 4, 10 inch tines), a pick ax, and a rake. A free formal, walk around estimate is provided to identify the locations and amounts of poison ivy to be removed. Alternative methods are discussed and a price is reached based on the amount of poison ivy and the risk involved to remove it. Customers sometimes require the use of a ladder when a vine has to be taken off a tree at a height greater than 10 feet. Any type of removal with aerial vines often allows the poison ivy to contact the entire body and is considered more risky. Also, rock walls and rocky yards present a strong risk of missed poison ivy, depending on the size of the rocks, age and depth of the roots. Several return trips can be necessary and that information is fully disclosed at the estimates and on the agreements.
The earth is loosened with the spading forks, on in each hand, a section at a time, say 10ft by 10ft. The roots and vines are pulled from the ground in a shaking fashion, and discarded to a bag, tarp or barrel. The area is often raked for any fallen/missed leaves. The containers are then emptied at a local or commercial brush pile where permits and stickers are purchased.
Due to the resilient behavior of the plant and the fact that it can grow back with very little root in the ground, I will return as many times as necessary until the poison ivy no longer grows back in the agreed upon area. Most removals requires 1-2 checks for regrowth after the removal is complete. Often times a check for regrowth only takes 10-20 minutes. Even though the plant can be very hurtful we can count on its ability to regrow and show itself, because if it grows back, I come back!
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
Luck has played some role in my life and with the business. I have had the fortune of meeting many excellent people. There is very little competition in the Boston area, it’s a great niche, I would say that is pretty lucky and bound to change over the next few years. I am also very lucky that, though I am allergic to the urushiol, I have learned that the body will heal itself if one can refrain from itching. I am also very lucky that the chemical treatment guy charges so much, allowing me to slightly undercut his price and offer a guarantee.
Another excellent benefit of the job is that I get paid to work out and I get to see a fair amount of wildlife and new and interesting bugs. I have unearthed some giant spiders and see countless snakes. I feel lucky and blessed to be able to own and operate my own business, I never imagined I would be able to make a career outdoors.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.peskypetespoisonivyremoval.com
- Phone: 781-608-2332
- Email: peskypetepoisonivyremoval@gmail.com
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