Tree Service in Cleveland, OH

Tree Service in Cleveland starts with one question we ask on almost every visit: is this tree yours or the city's? Cleveland has more than 100,000 trees on public property and in the right-of-way, most of them in the tree lawn between the sidewalk and the curb. Those belong to the city, and work on them runs through the Division of Urban Forestry. Everything behind the sidewalk, from the silver maple in the side yard to the volunteer elm along the garage, is the owner's responsibility. That is the work we do: pruning, removal, stump grinding and storm cleanup on private property, from Kamm's Corner to Collinwood.

A city that has been losing shade

Cleveland is still called the Forest City, but the 2020 progress report on the Cleveland Tree Plan put average canopy at 18 percent of the city's land, down from 21 percent in 2000, and estimated that roughly 75 acres of canopy disappear each year. Kamm's Corner, on the far west side, was the only neighborhood at 30 percent or more. The Tree Plan's goal is 30 percent by 2040, which would take more than 26,000 new trees a year plus care for the ones already standing. For a homeowner, that context matters in a simple way: a healthy mature tree on a city lot is worth keeping if it can be kept safely. We look for ways to prune and reduce weight before we recommend taking a tree down.

What city rules mean for your project

If a job touches a tree lawn tree, a median, or other city property, the city requires a tree work permit before anyone plants, prunes, removes, or digs near it. The Urban Forestry permit page says pruning on public trees must follow ANSI A300 and that topping, lion's tailing and pollarding are not allowed. Removals of public trees are generally approved only for safety or structural reasons, and stumps from approved removals must be ground at least 8 inches below grade and backfilled with topsoil. Utilities have to be marked through 811 (OUPS) before stump work or planting. When a private tree we are removing hangs over a city tree, or a city tree is the real problem, we tell you up front so the right permit or 311 request happens first.

East side, west side

Clevelanders sort themselves by which side of the Cuyahoga River they live on, and the trees follow a similar split. Lake-effect snow falls mainly on the East Side, usually starting in mid-November and lasting until the lake surface freezes in late January or February. Heavy, wet snow on a long maple limb is a common winter failure, so east side calls often come after a storm rather than before one. On the West Side, many of our jobs are tight backyard removals between garages, fences and houses built close together, where a tree has to come down in small pieces rather than in one fall.

Typical jobs on Cleveland lots

• Crown cleaning and weight reduction on maples and oaks that hang over roofs and driveways
• Removal of dead ash, which turns brittle and becomes harder to climb the longer it stands
• Sectional takedowns in narrow side yards where there is no room to drop a tree
• Clearing branches back from the house, garage roof and gutters
• Stump grinding after removals so the yard can be reseeded or paved
• Storm cleanup after snow, ice or summer wind

Power lines

Cleveland is served by two electric utilities, FirstEnergy and Cleveland Public Power, depending on the address. Limbs touching service drops or primary lines should be reported to whichever utility bills you. Cleveland Public Power lists 216-664-3156 for outage reports. We do not cut branches that are in contact with energized lines.

Getting a quote

Call (216) 294-3085 or send the form with your address, a few photos and a note on which tree worries you. We walk the yard, point out anything that looks like city property, and leave a written estimate that spells out the cutting, the cleanup and whether the stump is included. Get a free estimate