Tree Service in Athens, GA

We remove, trim, and grind out trees across Athens-Clarke County and the towns around it. If a tree is threatening your house right now, call (571) 412-0006. If it can wait, ask us for a free written estimate and we will come look at it.

Tree on a house, a car, or a power line, or blocking your driveway? Call (571) 412-0006. Do not wait for a form.

Everything else? Request a written estimate and we will schedule a visit.

Request a free written estimate

No obligation, and we will not pass your details to anyone you have not asked us to.

What we do

Large tree being sectioned down in pieces beside a residential property

Tree removal

Dead pines, storm-damaged hardwoods, trees leaning the wrong way, and trees that have simply outgrown the spot they were planted in. Whole trees or a single dangerous limb.

Tree removal in Athens
Arborist pruning branches high in a tree crown

Tree trimming and pruning

Clearing limbs off a roof, lifting a canopy over a driveway, thinning a crown so wind moves through it, and taking out deadwood before it comes down on its own.

Tree trimming and pruning in Athens
Stump grinder cutting into a tree stump

Stump grinding

Grinding the stump below grade so you can put grass, a bed, or a new tree where the old one stood. We grind stumps we removed and stumps somebody else left behind.

Stump grinding in Athens
Storm-damaged tree fallen across a residential yard

Emergency and storm damage work

Trees on structures, split trunks, hanging limbs, and the mess a summer storm leaves in a back yard.

Emergency and storm damage work in Athens

What a job actually costs

Nobody can price a tree from a phone call, and you should be careful with anyone who tries. Cost comes down to size, what is underneath the tree, how close it is to something that would be expensive to hit, and how much of the day gets spent cutting up and hauling what comes down.

We put the number in writing before any saw comes out of the truck, and the written number is the number. Our tree removal cost page walks through what moves the price up and down, and where you can save money if you are flexible about the wood.

What happens when you call

  1. You tell us what you are looking at. A photo helps more than a description. Send one if you can.
  2. We come out and look. Trees get quoted in person, on site, with eyes on the tree and on the access.
  3. You get the price in writing. Scope, cleanup, and what happens to the wood, all spelled out.
  4. We schedule the work. Emergencies move to the front. Everything else gets a real date.
  5. We clean up. Brush chipped, wood handled the way you asked, ground raked. You should not be able to tell we parked there.

Tell us what you are dealing with and we will come look at it.

Request a free written estimate

Ask any tree company these questions first

This is worth saying plainly, because it is the thing local homeowners complain about most. Before anyone starts cutting on your property, ask for proof of general liability insurance and workers' compensation. Tree work goes wrong at height, over roofs, and near power lines. If an uninsured crew is hurt in your yard, or drops a limb through your neighbor's fence, the question of who pays gets very unpleasant very quickly.

Ask for a written estimate, not a number shouted from the driveway. Ask what happens to the wood and the brush, because hauling is a real share of the job. And ask whether the price includes the stump, since grinding is usually quoted separately.

Athens trees are not generic trees

Mature trees arching over a residential street in the Southeast

Athens sits in the Georgia Piedmont, and the county takes its canopy seriously enough to have written it into law. Athens-Clarke County adopted a Community Tree Management Ordinance in 2005, and the ordinance sets a goal of keeping at least 45% canopy cover across the county (Athens-Clarke County). The county also runs a Community Tree Program and publishes a native plant guide written specifically for Piedmont conditions.

For you as a homeowner that matters in two practical ways. Mature hardwoods and tall pines close to older houses mean removals here are often tight, technical jobs rather than open-field drops. And there are rules about which trees can come down, which we cover on the Athens tree rules page.

Do you need permission to take a tree down?

Often, no. Outside the Milledge Avenue Overlay District, the county's ordinance does not regulate trees on private lots that have not been developed since 2005, and non-protected private trees may be removed at any time for any reason (Athens-Clarke County). There are real exceptions, including protected and Landmark trees, and there are separate rules for larger lots and for timber harvesting.

We work through this with you before we quote, because a permit question can change the job. The tree rules page has the actual criteria the county publishes, including who is responsible when a neighbor's tree comes down on your side of the line.

When to prune, and when to just wait

If a limb is hanging over your roof, timing does not matter. Deal with it.

For routine pruning, University of Georgia Extension points to the dormant winter season, roughly January into early March, before spring growth starts, with spring-flowering plants pruned after they finish flowering. If you call us in July about shaping a healthy tree, there is a fair chance we will tell you it can wait until winter, and why. More on that on the trimming page.

Where we work

Athens-Clarke County first, plus the towns around it including Watkinsville, Bogart, Winterville, Bishop, Statham, Hull, Colbert, and Jefferson. Some of those sit in Oconee, Jackson, Madison, or Barrow County, and the tree rules are not identical across county lines. The service area page lists the towns and explains what changes when you cross one.

Get a written estimate

Tell us what you are dealing with and we will come look at it. If it is urgent, call (571) 412-0006 instead of filling in a form, because the phone is faster.

Request a free written estimate

No obligation, and we will not pass your details to anyone you have not asked us to.