Tree removal
Taking a tree out entirely — dead, storm-damaged, structurally defective, or simply too large for where it stands. Three methods depending on the site: straight felling where there is a clear drop zone, sectional dismantling with rigging where there is not, and crane lifts on the steep waterfront blocks.
Full detail on the tree removal page, with the local permit and access picture on the regional removal guide.
Pruning, reduction and deadwooding
The work that keeps a tree rather than removing it.
Deadwooding takes the dead limbs out of the canopy — cheap, high value, and the limbs removed are the ones most likely to fall. Crown thinning reduces wind loading so air passes through rather than pushing against the crown, which matters enormously on the exposed coast. Crown reduction shortens limbs back to suitable lateral growth points, lowering height and end weight without wrecking the structure. Clearance pruning lifts branches off roofs, gutters, driveways, solar panels and service lines.
None of that is topping. Cutting a eucalypt back to stubs produces weak regrowth and a bigger bill later — the trimming versus removal article covers why.
Palm removal and tidying
Cocos, queen and Alexandra palms are everywhere on the Peninsula and the coastal suburbs, and they generate constant work: fronds and seed heads into pools and gutters, and prolific self-seeding along fence lines.
A palm has no branch structure, so it cannot be reduced. The options are a tidy — fronds and seed heads removed — or a full removal. Cocos palm in particular is treated as an environmental weed in parts of NSW.
Emergency and storm work
Around the clock, triaged by risk. Trees on houses, across driveways, hung up in other trees, or lifted at the root plate after heavy rain.
A limb on an electrical conductor is never a tree job. Keep everyone eight metres back and ring the electricity emergency number — the power line guide explains why, and what to do if a tree falls on your house covers the first hour.
Stump grinding
A carbide wheel turns the stump and the top of the root plate into chip, normally 200 to 300 millimetres below grade. Enough for turf, mulch or a garden bed, and much cheaper than excavation. See the stump grinding page.
Stump removal
Full excavation of the root plate, for when a slab, pool, footing or service trench is going through the spot. Considerably more expensive, considerably more disruptive, and the only option where something structural is going over the top. See the stump removal page.
Working out what you need
If you are not sure, say so. The useful part of a site visit is being told what the tree actually requires, including when that is nothing.
Local conditions vary widely across the region — the service area index has suburb-by-suburb notes, and the guides library covers costs, council approval, insurance and technique.
Frequently asked questions
Which service do I actually need?
Describe the problem rather than naming the service. Limbs over the roof is clearance pruning. A tree that has outgrown the block is reduction or removal depending on its condition. A stump in the lawn is grinding. A stump where a slab is going is excavation. A contractor who asks what the problem is before quoting a service is the one to keep.
Do you do emergency work?
Storm and emergency call-outs run around the clock. After a widespread east coast low they are triaged rather than booked — trees on roofs, across driveways and hanging in other trees are looked at first, and the first visit is usually about making the tree safe rather than finishing the clean-up. Anything touching a power line is an electricity network emergency, not a tree job.
Can several jobs be done on one visit?
Yes, and it is the cheapest way to buy tree work. Mobilisation is a fixed cost, so the second and third items on the same visit are considerably cheaper than the first. Trees, palms and stumps booked together on one day with the gates already open beats three separate visits by a wide margin.