Case study · Hurst Green
Ash die back fell and remove
Ash die back, complete take down and remove timber
Read the case studyTree removal, felling and dismantling
When a tree has to come out, it has to come out. We either dismantle it in sections, rigging the pieces down over houses, sheds and fences, or straight-fell it where there's safe drop-zone. NPTC qualified, working to BS3998, fully insured.
The service
What it is
Felling is taking a tree down. Most people call it tree removal, and when the tree is dead, split or storm-damaged, damaged tree removal. Same job, whichever words you use. In an open field with drop-zone, that's a single cut at the base and the tree goes where we planned. In a garden next to a house with a shed on one side, a greenhouse on the other and a neighbour's conservatory behind, that's a sectional dismantle. We climb the tree, take it down piece by piece, rigging limbs on ropes and lowering them to ground.
Both jobs end the same way, with a stump in the ground and a pile of arisings on the chipper. The difference is the method and the risk. Straight felling is faster and cheaper where the ground allows it. Sectional is the answer almost everywhere else in a domestic garden.
When felling is the right call
- The tree is dead, dying, or structurally unsound, and a reduction won't bring it back.
- A split leader or major limb failure has made the tree unsafe to leave standing.
- The tree is the wrong species in the wrong place and has outgrown the garden beyond what a reduction can fix.
- Honey fungus, ash dieback or similar pathology means the tree won't see another five years.
- You're putting in an extension, a new driveway or a rebuild, and the tree sits where the footings need to go.
Damaged and dangerous tree removal
A storm-split limb hanging over the drive, a dead ash leaning further every winter, a tree brought half down by wind: that's damaged tree removal, and it doesn't wait politely for a quiet week. Give us a ring and we'll tell you honestly how fast we can get there; on a genuine emergency we aim for the next working day. If it's still moving or near a road or power line, start with our emergency page, and for a tree already on the ground see storm damage and fallen tree removal.
A damaged tree is rarely a straight fell. The wood is under tension in ways a healthy stem isn't, so we work it in sections, rigged and lowered, reading the load before every cut. That judgement is what the NPTC tickets are for.
How we work
How we do it
- Site visit and method statementWe walk the job, agree the method with you, write up RAMS, and plan the drop-zones and rigging points before we turn up with a saw.
- Nesting-bird check between March and AugustLegal duty, and we do it honestly. If there's an active nest, we wait or we work around it.
- Rigging, not droppingLimbs over houses, sheds, fences and neighbouring gardens come down on ropes. Ground mats protect the lawn where we need them.
- Chipper on site, waste away on the truckLogs stacked where you want them or taken with us. Stump either ground out (see below) or left standing if you'd rather.
What we won't do
We won't fell a tree we haven't seen. We won't fell a TPO'd or conservation-area tree without the paperwork in place. We won't drop a limb we're not confident of landing where we planned. If a reduction would do the job, we'll say so; if the tree genuinely has to come out, we'll say that too.
TPOs and conservation areas
If your tree is in a conservation area and over 75mm in diameter at 1.5 metres, you generally need to file a Section 211 notice with the council before any felling. The council then has six weeks to respond. A TPO'd tree needs a formal application with evidence for removal, regardless of the conservation area status. We file the paperwork with your local council on your behalf and wait the clock out before we put a saw in.
A felling licence is a separate system again, from the Forestry Commission rather than the council, and clearing one does not clear the other. It rarely bites a garden tree, but it does apply on woodland, paddocks and anything over five cubic metres in a quarter. Our guides cover both: do I need a felling licence? and can I cut down a tree in my garden?.
Pricing guide
What tree removal costs
We have gathered publicly available pricing so you can see the range before we visit. Below is what the main UK cost guides publish for tree removal, and then how we price yours.
What moves the price
- height and lean. A big or leaning stem is sectional work on ropes, not one cut.
- what's underneath. Rigging over a conservatory takes longer than dropping into a paddock.
- access for the chipper. Long carries add hours.
- waste and logs. Taken away, stacked, or logged for you; each moves the price.
How we price it
Priced per tree after a site visit. Species, size, access for the chipper, proximity to buildings and whether the tree is TPO'd all move the number. A mature Monterey Pine in a small garden next to the house and over a patio is a different job to a dead ash in an open paddock. We put a written quote in front of you within two working days, with the method on it.
If you want a ballpark before we visit, the national cost guides publish them, and they disagree with each other. Checkatrade, MyBuilder, MyJobQuote and Rated People put a small tree removal anywhere from £150 to £500, mostly agree on £400 to £700 for a medium tree, and run £650 to £4,800 for large and difficult trees; MyJobQuote prices a mature oak removal at £2,800 to £4,800. None of those figures is our quote. They're wide because access, rigging and waste move the price more than the tree itself, which is exactly why we quote on the tree, not from a menu.
See how we price every job, across tree surgery and fencing →
What customers say
Reviews from tree surgery work
5.0 across 12 Google reviews, all verifiable on our profile
★★★★★“Josh has done a variety of jobs for us on several occasions. This has included helping us to manage a small woodland addressing storm damage, logging, chipping, and tree management generally. Plus a bit of hard landscaping and groundwork too! His work is always first class; tidy, efficient, on time and on budget. We are a return customer. Highly recommended!”
★★★★★“We recently had JM Tree services to carry out work on a large Oak tree and we could not be more pleased with how the work was done and how tidy they left the site when the work was done. We would highly recommend them”
Related work
Related work
Recent tree surgery jobs that involved tree removal, felling and dismantling.
Where we work
Tree removal across East Sussex
We cover about twenty miles around Heathfield, which takes in Hastings, Battle, Bexhill, Rye and the villages between. Each town page has what the ground and the trees are actually like there.
Common questions
Felling questions
Why won't you price a tree removal over the phone?
Because the price lives in the details a phone call can't see. What stands under the tree, how the chipper gets in, whether the stem is sound enough to climb. We look first, then you get a fixed written quote within two working days.
The cost guides show huge ranges. Which end would we be?
Wherever your tree honestly sits. The ranges are wide because access, rigging and waste move the price more than the tree itself. A dead ash in an open paddock and a mature oak over a conservatory are different days entirely.
What does a felling price include?
The method statement, the fell or dismantle, chipping and waste away, and the site left tidy. Logs stacked if you want them. Stump grinding is quoted alongside so you can decide either way.
Got a tree you're not sure about?
Fill in the quote form or give us a call and we'll come and have a look. No charge for the visit, no hard sell.