Questions people ask

Do I need permission to cut down a tree?

Sometimes. If the tree has a Tree Preservation Order on it, or it stands in a conservation area, you need to go through Cornwall Council before any work happens. If neither applies, and the tree is in your own garden, you can generally do as you like with it. Checking takes a few minutes and costs nothing.

I check before quoting and will tell you if an application is needed. Working on a protected tree without consent is a criminal offence, and the fine can run into serious money.

What is a TPO?

A Tree Preservation Order. It is a legal protection a council puts on a specific tree, group of trees or woodland, usually because it matters to the look of an area. Once one is in place you need written consent before pruning, felling or damaging the tree, and that applies to the owner as much as anyone else.

A conservation area works slightly differently: trees over a certain size are protected automatically, and you have to give the council six weeks notice of what you intend to do rather than apply for consent.

How much does it cost to remove a tree?

It depends on the tree, and I will not guess at it over the phone. The main things that move the price are size and species, how close the tree is to buildings and power lines, whether it can be felled whole or has to come down in sections, access, and what happens to the timber afterwards.

This is why every quote is priced on site, in person. Coming out to look costs you nothing and you get a price on the day.

When can I cut my hedge?

Ideally between September and February, outside the bird nesting season. It is an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to damage an active nest, and hedges are where a great many birds nest. Between March and August I check a hedge before cutting, and leave any section holding a nest.

What happens to the wood and the branches?

We agree that before I start and it goes on the quote. Most often the timber stays with you — plenty of people here want it for a wood burner — and I cut it to a length you can handle and stack it where you want it. If you would rather it did not stay, say so at the quote and we will sort out what happens to it.

Taking arisings away costs time and money, so it is priced in at the quote rather than added to the bill afterwards.

How long does a job take?

Most domestic jobs are a day or less. A single hedge or a straightforward pruning job is often a morning. A large removal that has to be dismantled in sections, or one with awkward access where everything is carried by hand, can run to two days or more. I will tell you which when I quote.

What if the tree is on a boundary?

If the trunk is on your neighbour's land the tree is theirs, whatever is overhanging. You are entitled to cut back branches and roots that cross onto your property, as far as the boundary and no further, and the cuttings technically belong to your neighbour. You cannot reach over and cut their side.

I will tell you factually what the law allows and do the work you are entitled to have done. I will not take a side in a dispute or promise you an outcome. Talking to the neighbour first almost always goes better than not.

Do you work in winter?

Yes, and for a lot of tree work winter is the best time. Broadleaved trees are dormant, the structure is visible with the leaves off, and there are no nesting birds to work around. Storm damage does not wait for good weather either. The main thing that stops work is high wind, because climbing in it is not safe.

Can you reach a tree with no access?

Usually. That is what climbing is for. Where there is no gate wide enough, no hard standing for a machine and no way to get a lorry near, the tree is dismantled by someone up it on ropes lowering the pieces down by hand. It takes longer than using a machine, which is reflected in the quote.

Across a lot of west Cornwall this is not the exception. Terraced streets in St Ives, Camborne and Redruth frequently have no side access at all.

Do you take the waste away?

Ask me at the quote and I will tell you straight what can happen to it on your job. The usual arrangement is that the timber stays with you, cut to a size you can use or move. If you want the arisings gone, that is arranged as part of the quote and you will see exactly what is included before you agree to anything.

What about bats and nesting birds?

Both are protected by law and it is my job to know it. Nesting birds are protected between roughly March and August, and it is an offence to damage an active nest. Bat roosts are protected all year round, whether or not bats are in them at the time. If I find either, work stops until it can be done properly.

That occasionally means a delay to the job.

How far do you travel?

Hayle, St Ives, Carbis Bay, Camborne, Penzance, Marazion, Redruth and the villages around them are my regular patch. I will go further across Cornwall and into Devon for the right job. If you are outside west Cornwall, ring and ask rather than assuming the answer is no.