FAQs

Most mature shade trees do well on a cycle of 3 to 5 years, though fast growers and trees near buildings usually need attention sooner than that. A quick annual look catches deadwood before it becomes a falling hazard overhead.

Not with proper staging. We set plywood or mats under any heavy equipment, rig larger sections down instead of dropping them, and plan the fall path in advance so turf, pavement, and irrigation lines all stay exactly as they were.

Everything gets chipped or cut and hauled away as part of the service, unless you would rather keep the wood. Plenty of customers ask us to stack firewood rounds along the tree line, and we are glad to.

Most stumps come out 6 to 8 inches below grade, which is plenty for grass, sod, or shallow planting afterward. Where a new tree or a patio is going in, we grind considerably deeper at your request before you plant anything.

Usually yes, though it takes longer. Tight spots call for a narrower machine and a slower, more patient pass, and we check for utilities, irrigation, and footings first so nothing hidden underground gets clipped during the grind itself.

A lean is not automatically a problem, since many trees grow that way for years without trouble. What matters is whether the lean is new, whether soil is heaving near the roots, and what sits in the fall path.

High winds loosen root plates and crack limbs deep inside the canopy where nothing shows from the ground below. That damage often surfaces weeks later, which is exactly why an inspection after a major storm is worth scheduling.

Often it can. Healthy trees compartmentalize wounds well when the break is cleaned back to sound wood and the remaining canopy is rebalanced. Trees losing more than roughly a third of their crown face much longer odds than that.

A straightforward backyard tree usually takes a few hours from setup through the final rake. Large specimens near houses, fences, or power lines can fill most of a day, because every single section has to come down deliberately.

Bare branches during the growing season, bark peeling away in sheets, brittle twigs that snap instead of bending, and steadily thinning canopy density all point the same direction. Fungal growth on the trunk usually confirms internal decay as well.

Never on your own. Limbs touching or near energized lines call for trained crews and utility coordination. We handle clearance trimming around residential service drops and coordinate directly with the utility whenever primary lines are anywhere near the job.

Take no more than a third of the growth in any single session on most established hedges. Cutting into bare inner wood on evergreens rarely regrows at all, so shaping happens gradually across a couple of scheduled visits.

Grinding stops the tree from feeding itself, so the roots left behind die back and decay naturally over the following seasons. A few species send up suckers for a while, which are easy enough to cut or treat.

Keep everyone well clear, especially of anything touching wires, and call the utility before approaching downed lines. Then photograph the scene from a safe distance and reach our team through the contact page for the fastest possible scheduling.

Move cars, patio furniture, planters, and grills clear of the work zone, and unlock any gates the Arbor Care Tree Service crew will need. Tell us about septic covers, irrigation heads, or soft ground so we can route equipment around them.