Small tree felling
Sometimes a tree is in the wrong place, or it is dead, or it has quietly become three times the tree you planted. Taking it out is straightforward if there is room to do it properly.
Best timeSeptember to February, outside nesting season
In most gardens there is nowhere to drop a tree in one piece, so it comes down in sections from the top. That is slower and a good deal more controlled: nothing lands where it was not meant to, and the fence, the shed and the greenhouse all stay where they are.
Same two checks as any tree work. Nesting birds first, which in practice means the clear window for felling runs from September through to the end of February. Then whether the tree is protected, because a Tree Preservation Order or a conservation area means council consent before a saw comes out.
Unless we agree otherwise I cut the stump low and leave it. Getting a stump out properly means grinding it, which is a separate job with a separate machine. Tell me if you plan to lay turf or a patio over the spot and I will leave things in the right state for it.
Small tree felling, before and after
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Questions people ask
- How big a tree can you take down?
- Garden-sized trees that I can work safely from the ground. If it is close to a house, hanging over a road, tangled in wires or big enough to need climbing, it is a tree surgeon’s job and I will say so when I look at it.
- Will you take the stump out as well?
- I cut it as low as I can get it. Removing it completely means stump grinding, which is separate work. If you want the ground clear enough to plant or pave, say so early and I will factor it in.
- Do I need permission to fell a tree in my own garden?
- Often not, but you need to check rather than assume. Tree Preservation Orders and conservation areas both require council consent, and planning conditions on newer estates sometimes protect specific trees too. One phone call to the council settles it.
- When can it be done?
- September to February is the clear run, outside the bird nesting season. Outside that window it depends entirely on what is living in the tree, and I will not take a chance on it.