Tree Trimming and Pruning in Tacoma

The short version: Thinning, deadwood, lifting limbs off roofs and driveways, shaping for light and view, hedges and shrubs. Climbed and roped, not hacked. The estimate is free and Ismael looks at it in person. Call or text (253) 590-8194.

What trimming can fix

Branches scraping the roof or the gutters. Limbs over the driveway that drop sap and needles on the cars. A fir or cedar that has grown so thick the wind cannot pass through it, which is how trees get pushed over. Dead wood in the crown that comes down on its own in the next storm. A view of the Sound or the mountain that has disappeared behind a wall of green. A fruit tree that has not been cut in ten years.

Diane Mcmillan wrote that Ismael gave her good suggestions about her trees and shrubs before any cutting started. That is the first step every time: he looks, tells you what he would take and why, and gives you a price.

How we prune

We climb. A climber on ropes can get to every part of the tree, make clean cuts at the right spot on the branch and lower anything heavy on a rope rather than letting it crash through the limbs below. Where a bucket lift fits in the driveway we use it, and for hedges and shrubs it is ladders, pole saws and hedge trimmers.

The usual work on a big fir or cedar is thinning and crown cleaning: dead and crossing limbs come out, the crown is opened up so wind and light pass through, and the lowest limbs are lifted clear of the roof, the driveway or the lawn. On maples, alders and fruit trees it is weight reduction on long limbs and shaping. Scott Friberg had nine overgrown firs thinned and eight stumps ground in one day of work.

Free estimate: call or text (253) 590-8194

Topping, and why we try to talk you out of it

Topping, cutting the whole top off a tall tree to make it shorter, is still asked for a lot around here. On a Douglas fir or a cedar it leaves a stub that rots and sprouts a cluster of weak tops that are more likely to break than the original, so in a few years the tree is taller, uglier and more dangerous than before. If the problem is height over the house, there is usually a better answer: thinning so wind passes through, lifting and reducing the limbs on the house side, or taking the tree out and planting something that fits the space. Ismael will tell you which one he would do at your house. If after that you still want it topped, it is your tree, and we will do it as cleanly as it can be done.

Hedges, laurel and shrubs

Laurel hedges, arborvitae, photinia, rhododendrons that have swallowed a window: we trim and shape them, and we take the cuttings. For a laurel hedge that has got away from you we can cut it back hard; laurel comes back from almost anything. The Webbers had us chip a huge pile of laurel they had pulled out themselves, in one day, straight into their yard as mulch.

When to trim

Most trimming on firs, cedars and hemlocks can be done any time of year. Maples bleed sap if cut in late winter, so we prefer summer or fall for them. Fruit trees are pruned in late winter while they are dormant. Storm clean up and anything hazardous gets done when you call. If you are not sure, call and ask; it costs nothing to find out.

What trimming costs

It depends on the size of the tree, how much is coming out, how hard it is to reach, and how much brush there will be to chip and haul. A few limbs off one maple is a short visit; thinning six big firs along a property line is a crew for a day. Ismael gives you the number in person, and it holds.