Where crews work, and what changes suburb to suburb

Four regions, not one

The Central Coast is a single local government area with a single tree permit regime, but on the ground it behaves like four different places. Knowing which one you are in explains most of what a contractor will say about your tree.

The Gosford basin and the sandstone ridges

Shallow soils over sandstone, steep drives, and a canopy dominated by smooth-barked angophora, spotted gum and blackbutt. Root plates run sideways along rock shelves rather than down, which matters for both stability and stump work. Bushland reserves like Rumbalara and the Strickland State Forest fringe put a lot of this area in the bushfire-prone mapping.

• Gosford — the CBD fringe, Presidents Hill and the escarpment streets.
• East Gosford — older housing stock, mature planted exotics, Caroline Bay frontage.
• Erina — Erina Creek flats and the ridges behind them.

The coastal strip and the headlands

Salt-laden onshore wind, sandy dune soils, and a mix of coast banksia, Norfolk Island pine and planted exotics that are constantly wind-pruned. Southerly busters do the damage here. Blocks backing onto Wyrrabalong and Bouddi National Parks are bushfire-prone.

• Terrigal — the Haven, the Skillion and the esplanade pines.
• Avoca Beach — lagoon flats below, steep hinterland above.
• Bateau Bay — Wyrrabalong edge, big backyard eucalypts and palms.
• The Entrance — the channel, the foreshore and the lake edge.

The Brisbane Water arm and the Peninsula

Two very different halves. North and east of the water, steep terraced blocks at Green Point, Kincumber, Saratoga and Daleys Point where crane or climbing access decides the price. South and west, the flat sand of the Woy Woy Peninsula with a high water table and Brisbane Water National Park on three sides.

• Green Point — the steepest residential ground on the Coast.
• Kincumber — Kincumber Mountain, the Broadwater and the flats between.
• Woy Woy — low ground, high water table, national park boundary.
• Umina Beach — deep dune sand and dense older housing.

The Wyong, Tuggerah Lakes and northern area

Flatter, more open, generally easier access, and the cheapest ground per tree on the Coast. Swamp mahogany and broad-leaved paperbark dominate the wet flats and go over readily in saturated ground. West of the highway the country turns rural fast.

• Wyong — the river flats and the rural hinterland behind them.
• Ourimbah — Ourimbah State Forest, the creek and the valley.
• Toukley — the isthmus between Tuggerah and Budgewoi Lakes.
• Lake Haven — the northern lakes suburbs and Charmhaven side.

Everywhere else

Contractors also work the areas without a dedicated page here — Wamberal, Forresters Beach, Copacabana, MacMasters Beach, Killcare, Ettalong, Booker Bay, Empire Bay, Davistown, Saratoga, Point Clare, Tascott, Koolewong, Narara, Lisarow, Wyoming, Niagara Park, Berkeley Vale, Long Jetty, Killarney Vale, Chittaway, Tuggerah, Warnervale, Wadalba, Gorokan, Kanwal, Budgewoi, Norah Head, Noraville, San Remo, Blue Haven, Doyalson, Lake Munmorah, Summerland Point and Chain Valley Bay, plus the rural west at Yarramalong, Dooralong, Jilliby, Mangrove Mountain, Kulnura, Somersby, Kariong, Peats Ridge and Spencer.

If your suburb is not listed above, ring (02) 4306 7828. The tree removal page explains the methods, and the regional guide covers permits and pricing.