Certified arborists · 24/7 callout
Felling, reductions, deadwooding and stump grinding, done by qualified arborists who work out what a tree will do before they put a saw in it.
Tree work is the one job in a garden where getting it wrong is not just expensive. A limb that goes the wrong way takes a conservatory roof, a car or a person with it, and a lot of the tree work we get called out to redo was done by someone who owned a chainsaw rather than someone who understood trees.
Our tree work is handled by certified arborists. That means the tree gets assessed before anything is cut: what species it is, where the weight actually sits, what has already failed inside it, and what is underneath. Then it comes down in a controlled order, or gets reduced properly rather than topped.
We work across Southampton, Eastleigh, Winchester, the New Forest and out through Hampshire. Arisings go through the chipper and leave on our van the same day, so you are not left with a garden full of brash.
In detail
Straight fells where there is room to drop it, sectional dismantling where there is not, which in most Southampton back gardens is the answer. We rig limbs down rather than letting them fall through your fence, and we protect the lawn under the drop zone. Where access is impossible we will tell you at the quote, not on the day.
A proper reduction takes the height and spread back to sound growth points so the tree responds by thickening up, not by throwing out weak vertical regrowth. Topping a tree, meaning cutting the crown flat across, is what causes that regrowth, and it leaves the tree weaker and uglier than before. We do not do it, and we will explain why if someone has quoted you for it.
Thinning lets light through to the lawn and the beds underneath without changing the shape of the tree. Lifting takes the low limbs off so you can get under it. Deadwooding pulls out the dead and hanging material that is going to come down on its own eventually, usually in a gale, usually at night.
Ground out below the surface so you can turf, pave or plant over it, and so it does not throw up suckers for the next three years. Worth knowing: some species (cherry, poplar, lime) will keep sending shoots up from the roots if the stump is only cut low, so grinding is the difference between finished and a recurring job.
Storm damage, a tree across the drive, a limb hanging over the road or your neighbour's roof. The emergency line runs around the clock and these jobs jump the diary. If it is unsafe, say so when you ring and we will treat it that way. Do not try to make it safe yourself — a tree under tension does not behave like a tree standing normally.
Self-seeded sycamore, leylandii runs that have got away, brambled-over plots and gardens that have had ten years of nothing. Cleared, chipped and taken away, and we will tell you what is worth keeping rather than levelling the lot by default. Overgrown hedges get the same treatment: cut back to a manageable line, with the arisings chipped and gone the same day. Between March and August we check for nesting birds before we start.
Straight answer
Nobody can price tree work off a phone call, and anyone who does is guessing. What moves the number: access (can the chipper get to it, or is everything coming through the house), what is underneath (a fell over an open lawn is a fraction of a dismantle over a conservatory), the species and condition, and how much waste comes off it. Height matters less than people expect; access matters far more. We come and look, then put it in writing.
Get it priced properlyTree Care questions
Sometimes, and it is worth getting right. The two cases are different. If the tree carries a Tree Preservation Order you need the council's written consent before anything is cut, which means an application and usually about eight weeks for a decision. If the tree is in a Conservation Area but has no TPO, you instead give the council six weeks' written notice, and they can use that time to put an Order on it. Either way, cutting a protected tree without going through it is a criminal offence and the fine can be unlimited. We check the position before we quote and tell you where you stand, and we will not cut a protected tree without the paperwork being right, however much you want it gone.
Ownership follows where the trunk sits, not the branches. If it is their trunk you can normally cut back overhanging growth to the boundary line, but the cuttings legally belong to them and you have to offer them back. If it is your trunk, the damage it does to their property is your responsibility. We deal with boundary trees regularly and can advise on which side of the line you are actually on.
Most work can be done year-round. Reductions and thinning are usually best in late autumn to late winter when the tree is dormant and you can see the structure. The exception that catches people out is nesting birds: it is an offence to damage an active nest, so between roughly March and August we check before we cut, and occasionally that means waiting.
Yes, it is included unless we agree otherwise. If you want the timber left for logs, say so and we will cut it to length and stack it instead — it costs you less and saves us a trip to the tip.
Recent tree care
Free quote
Tell us roughly what you need and we will come out, look at it properly and put a price in writing. No charge for the visit.
Where we work
Based in Southampton and out across the county most days of the week.
Not seeing your town? The list is where we normally work, not a boundary. Ring and ask.
023 8111 2905Tell us what needs doing and we will come and look at it. Free quote, in writing, no obligation at the end of it.
24/7 emergency tree work · Storm damage, fallen and dangerous trees