Frequently Asked Questions

It depends on where the tree is. The city requires a Tree Removal Permit for any tree in the public right-of-way, any tree 4 inches or more in diameter on residential lots over one acre or non-residential lots, trees in conservation setbacks or buffers, and any tree in a local historic district. Specimen trees need Board of Adjustment approval. If you're unsure, we'll look at your lot on the estimate visit, and the city's zoning staff can be reached at 910-254-0900.

HomeBlue's Wilmington cost guide (2025) puts most removals between $400 and $1,800, with a typical job around $1,100 and a 40-foot tree around $450 to $860. Trees over roofs, near lines, or dead and brittle cost more because they have to be taken down in small pieces. Your written estimate is the price.

Stay at least 10 feet away and call Duke Energy, not a tree company, if a tree or limb is on a power line. For the service line running to your house, Duke Energy says the property owner is responsible for keeping it clear, and it will disconnect that line at no cost before tree work if you or your contractor contact them first. We coordinate that before working near your service drop.

Not without the city's say. Trees in the public right-of-way belong to the City of Wilmington, which maintains more than 30,000 street trees, and removing one requires a permit. If a damaged city tree is an immediate danger, the city says to call 911; otherwise, report it to the city.

Healthy, well-rooted pines don't need to come down just because a storm might come. Pines that are dead, red-topped, leaning toward the house, cracked, or growing in a spot where roots can't spread are a different story. A visit before August lets you deal with the risky ones calmly instead of after a storm, when every crew in town is booked.

Yes, we grind stumps as part of a removal or as a separate job, anywhere in Wilmington and the nearby towns. Stumps aren't collected by city yard-waste crews, so grinding is the usual way to get rid of one. The quote shows the stump as its own line, so you can leave it if you prefer.

Policies differ, so check yours, but insurers commonly cover removal when a fallen tree damages a covered structure such as the house or a garage, and often pay less or nothing for a tree that falls in an open yard without hitting anything. Take photos before anything is moved. We provide a written, itemized invoice you can send to your adjuster.

On many single-family lots under an acre that aren't in a historic district or a protected buffer, the city's permit list doesn't apply. Lots in a local historic district, lots over an acre, and trees in the right-of-way do need a permit, and specimen trees need Board of Adjustment approval. Check your HOA rules too; many Wilmington subdivisions have their own.

A single medium tree with good access is often finished in a few hours, including cleanup. A large oak over a house, a tree that has to be lowered piece by piece, or several trees on one lot can take a full day or more. The quote gives you a realistic estimate.

Whatever you prefer. Many homeowners keep oak for firewood and have the brush chipped and hauled. Since city yard-waste pickup only takes limbs up to four feet long and six inches thick, and may not collect contractor debris, we usually haul large wood unless you ask us to leave it.

Winter can be easier: deciduous trees have no leaves, ground is often firmer, and schedules are less crowded than after a summer storm. The biggest price factors are still size, condition and access, so a quote in any season will show what your tree actually involves.

We look at tree condition on every estimate visit and explain what we see. For a formal risk assessment, such as for an insurance dispute or a protected tree, an ISA Certified Arborist can provide a written report using the industry's tree risk assessment methods.

Getting a tree off a house or out of a driveway is about safety, but the city's permit rules still apply to right-of-way trees, historic district lots and the other cases on its list. If a damaged tree is on city property or in the right-of-way, call the city; for an immediate danger from a city tree, the city says to call 911. For private trees in a regulated category, ask zoning staff how they want after-storm removals reported.

Be careful. After big storms, out-of-town crews arrive quickly, and some ask for large cash deposits. Get a written price before work starts, don't pay in full up front, and make sure the quote says what happens to the wood and whether the tree comes off in pieces or by crane.

No tree company should touch a tree on an energized line. Duke Energy has to clear or de-energize the line first. Once the utility has made it safe, we can remove the rest of the tree from your property.

Usually your own homeowners policy handles damage to your house, whatever yard the tree came from. If the tree was clearly dead or dangerous and the neighbor was told about it, insurers sometimes pursue the neighbor. Check with your agent; an itemized removal invoice helps either way.

It depends on how widespread the damage is. After a local thunderstorm we can often get to you soon; after a hurricane, demand across the region is enormous. Call any time to leave details, and we'll schedule by danger: trees on occupied homes first.

The city's permit rules are based on where the tree is (right-of-way, historic district, large residential lots, buffers), not on whether it's alive. If your lot is in one of those categories, check with city zoning staff even for a dead tree. On a typical residential lot outside those categories, the city's permit list doesn't apply.

Look for mushrooms or shelf fungi on the trunk or roots, cavities at old pruning cuts, cracks, and dead limbs high in the crown. Tapping a trunk with a mallet can reveal hollow areas. For a valuable tree, an arborist can use tools like a resistance drill to measure how much sound wood is left.

It can. Southern pine beetles move to neighboring pines, and NC State Extension recommends cutting active infestations promptly. Ips and black turpentine beetles usually kill scattered trees rather than groups, but removing dead and dying pines still reduces the risk to the ones nearby.

Sometimes. Removing a dead limb, reducing a heavy one, or cabling a weak fork can make a tree safer for years. When decay has taken most of the trunk or main limbs, or the root plate is lifting, removal is usually the safer choice.

You're paying for the crane, its operator and setup time on top of the tree crew. On the right tree it can still be the better value, because the job is shorter and less likely to damage a roof, pool cage or fence.

The crane usually sets up in the street or on the driveway, on pads or mats that spread the load. On soft sandy lawns, especially after rain, we keep heavy equipment off unless it's necessary and protect the ground where we can.

Work that blocks a lane or sidewalk may need a city permit or traffic control, depending on the street. We check that during planning. A city permit for the tree itself is a separate question that depends on where the tree stands.

Often, yes. Cranes can reach over a house to a backyard tree, but how far depends on the crane's size and how close it can park. The site visit tells us whether it's practical.

Late winter, before spring growth, is a good time for most structural pruning, and it lets you see the branch structure of deciduous trees. Deadwood and clearance work can be done any time. For storm prep, aim to finish before August, when the most active part of hurricane season begins.

Yes, with light, selective cuts: deadwood, clearance and shortening long limbs back to side branches. Live oaks handle that well. What harms them is heavy cutting, topping and large wounds from removing big limbs flush to the trunk.

Trees in the public right-of-way belong to the City of Wilmington, and work on them needs the city's approval. Contact the city about a street tree that needs pruning, rather than hiring anyone to cut it.

No. Cutting crape myrtles back to the same stubs each winter, often called crape murder, creates knobs and weak sprouts. Removing crossing branches, suckers and seed heads keeps them healthy without topping.

Duke Energy manages vegetation around its primary lines and has a tree trimming request form; it says a vegetation professional follows up within 10 business days. The service line running to your house is the property owner's to keep clear, and Duke will disconnect it at no cost so a tree company can work near it.

No. Wilmington's yard waste collection doesn't accept stumps, root balls or palm trunks. Grinding is usually the simplest way to get rid of one.

Yes. We grind stumps left by other crews or by homeowners, and old stumps that have been in the yard for years.

Smaller grinders fit through many standard backyard gates, but it varies by machine. Tell us your gate width when you call, and we'll plan around it.

Yes, but grind deeper and remove the chips, since decaying wood ties up nitrogen as it breaks down. Fill with soil and, if you can, set the new tree a few feet off the old spot so its roots aren't fighting the old ones.

Yes, we grind stumps in Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach and Kure Beach as well as Wilmington and the rest of New Hanover County. Access to raised beach homes and sandy lots is something we look at on the visit.