ISA BCMA study guide
ISA BCMA · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Board Certified Master Arborist (BCMA) is an advanced credential issued by the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA). It is intended for experienced tree care practitioners who already work at a high level of technical skill and want a credential that reflects depth of knowledge across the whole discipline rather than a single specialty. The ISA BCMA study guide has 10 sections and about 2,962 words.
01Tree Biology
Trees grow only at meristems: apical meristems add length, the vascular cambium adds diameter (xylem inward, phloem outward), and the cork cambium produces periderm. Only the outermost sapwood conducts water; inner heartwood provides support and stored reserves.
299 words, about 1 min02Tree Identification and Selection
Identification rests on binomial nomenclature: genus capitalized, specific epithet lowercase, both italicized; cultivar names follow the species in single quotes and are not italicized (they may also carry a trademark). Work down a diagnostic hierarchy - leaf arrangement (alternate, opposite, whorled), leaf type (simple, pinnately or palmately compound), margin, venation, buds (terminal vs.
289 words, about 1 min03Soil Management
Texture is fixed - sand 2.0–0.05 mm, silt 0.05–0.002 mm, clay <0.002 mm - while structure (aggregation) can be improved. Clay holds water and nutrients well (high cation exchange capacity) but has tiny pores and poor aeration; sand drains fast but retains little.
323 words, about 2 min04Installation and Establishment
Most transplant failures trace to planting depth. The root flare must sit at or slightly above grade; dig the hole 2–3 times the root ball width but no deeper than the ball, so the tree does not settle.
345 words, about 2 min05Diagnosis and Plant Disorders
Diagnosis is systematic: identify the plant, separate signs (the actual pest or pathogen, e.g., fruiting bodies, insects, exudate) from symptoms (what the plant looks like), establish the pattern in time and space, examine the whole plant including roots and trunk, review site history and weather, then form and test hypotheses. Abiotic disorders - drought, flooding, compaction, deicing salt, herbicide drift, frost, sunscald, nutrient deficiency, lightning - are non-infectious and usually uniform across species sharing a site.
263 words, about 1 min06Plant Health Care
Plant health care is proactive and plant-centered: know the plant, its site, and its normal appearance; monitor; set thresholds; and choose the least disruptive effective tactic. IPM is the decision framework, ranking cultural, mechanical/physical, biological, genetic, and chemical tools by risk.
302 words, about 2 min07Pruning
Pruning is deliberate wounding with a purpose. Work with the branch collar and branch bark ridge: the three-cut method prevents bark tearing on heavy limbs, and the final cut leaves the collar intact - flush cuts remove the tree's own barrier zone.
288 words, about 1 min08Tree Protection
Protection begins before equipment arrives. Define a Tree Protection Zone from trunk diameter - a common minimum is 30 cm (1 ft) of radius per 2.5 cm (1 in) of DBH, extended for sensitive or high-value trees - and fence it on day one.
304 words, about 2 min09Tree Risk Management
Risk combines likelihood of failure, likelihood of impact (the target and its occupancy), and consequences. Assessments follow ANSI A300 Part 9 and the ISA BMP: limited visual, basic, advanced, and specialized (e.g., air excavation, decay detection) levels.
257 words, about 1 min10Urban Forestry and Tree Management
Urban forestry manages the forest as a system: inventory, canopy cover, benefits (stormwater capture, cooling, air quality, property value, public health), and planning. Know the tools - GIS inventories, i-Tree for benefits and costs, canopy-cover goals, tree ordinances and the limits on regulating public versus private property, tree boards, master plans, pruning and maintenance cycles, work-order systems, and budgets.
292 words, about 1 min