• What is the difference between trimming and pruning?     Answer
• Why would someone want to get their trees pruned?     Answer
• Why is it important to prune the trees away from utility lines?     Answer
• Why would someone want to get their shrubbery trimmed?     Answer

• How can I tell what type of tree I have?     Answer
• What is the part of a tree which is called a leader?     Answer
• What is the part of a tree which is called the trunk?     Answer
• What is the part of a tree which is called the stump?     Answer
• Is stump removal a normal part of removing a tree?     Answer
• What is meant by standing dead?     Answer
• What if I have an EMERGENCY tree issue?    Answer
• How long does it take to remove a tree?     Answer
• Why is the tree and stump removal estimated out separately?    Answer

• Is stump removal a normal part of removing a tree?     Answer
• Why should I consider removing a stump?     Answer
• What is a stump?     Answer
• What is the process for removing a stump?     Answer
• What is the normal depth that a stump gets removed to?     Answer

What is the difference between trimming and pruning?

     For the purpose of our discussion, both trimming and pruning can be defined as follows:
To cut off or remove dead or living branches of a plant to improve shape and/or growth. The difference is noticed when referring to trees or shrubbery.

• Trimming usually refers to shrubbery.
• Pruning  usually refers to trees.

     There are many reasons which people have concluded that their trees need to be pruned. The following is a partial list of why one may want to prune their trees:

• Safety is of utmost importance. Trees have a natural life expenctancy. When a tree nears the end of its natural life, then the tree may begin to shed branches, some large and some small. When the branches start to shed and fall at will, the tree then becomes a safety issue which should be addressed. Dead branches can fall out of a tree at any time, placing the children, pets and others at risk of personal injury.

• When tree branches grow into or near power line and other utility lines, the branches then can become a hazard. The hazard is two fold:
  • Damage to the tree. When trees grow into power line(s) and other utility line(s), the natural movement of the trees causes the tree branches to rub against the lines and this action causes open wounds to the trees. Through the open wounds, insects and desease can enter the trees and cause sever damage to the health of the tree.

  • Damage to the utility lines. When the tree branches rub against the utility lines, the protective casing of the utility lines can be rubbed off. This can cause open access to electrical lines, poor reception through cable and telephone lines and security concerns for monitoring equipment.

• Storm damage. Storm damage can be caused by wind, rain and/or lightning. Damage can range from:
  • Cracked or snapped branches.
  • Broken branches which are disconnected and still hanging in the trees.
  • Tree tops which have snapped off.
  • Lightning hits
  • Heavy rains which can loosen the root stability.

• Deseased limbs. Desease will weaken the structure of the branches and/or trees to a point where they become a hazard to people and/or pets.

• Insects can cause major health and structural damage to all parts of a tree. The major concern one faces with insect damage is the hidden damage that can be done by the insects which weakens a tree both structurely and health wise.

     When tree branches grow into or near power line and other utility lines, the branches then can become a hazard. The hazard is two fold:

• Damage to the tree. When trees grow into power line(s) and other utility line(s), the natural movement of the trees causes the tree branches to rub against the lines and this action causes open wounds to the trees. Through the open wounds, insects and desease can enter the trees and cause sever damage to the health of the tree.

• Damage to the utility lines. When the tree branches rub against the utility lines, the protective casing of the utility lines can be rubbed off. This can cause open access to electrical lines, poor reception through cable and telephone lines and security concerns for monitoring equipment.

     There are a few general reasons why people request their shrubs to be trimmed.

• Esthetics - How the shrubs look.

• Security - Trimming back shrubs allow for easier viewing of property and reduces the available places for people to hide.

• Opening head room for walkways.

• Trimming shrubs away from windows for better views.

• Trying to regain control of overgrown shrubs.

     Tree identification is normally accomplished by a few different visual signs.

• The shape of the leaves or needles.
• The color and texture of the tree bark.
• The overall shape of the tree.

     Learn more about Leave Terminology.

     The term 'leader' is a relative term to identify the larger part of a branch or one of the sticks on a multi-trunk tree.

     The trunk of a tree is the part of the tree which rises up from the ground and continues until the first fork where the branches/leaders start.

     The part of the tree which is called the stump is the part of the trunk that is left after the trunk has been cut off. Stumps can be of different heights, most stumps after a tree removal are six inches and under of trunk remaining above the ground. There are some times where one would like a stump to be cut high to the size of one to two feet.

     Roots radiate out from the stumps and can spread out in many directions for many feet. A stump does not include all of the roots that are part of the tree. The stump only includes the roots that are located physically close to the trunk of the tree. Roots that radiate outside of a one foot area from the trunk are not considered part of the stump.

     Stump removal is not a normal part of removing a tree, but the request to remove stumps happens on a high frequency.

     True's Tree Service quotes stump removals as a separate line item on our proposals. We do this for a couple of reasons. This allows our customers to shop around for stump removal prices and compare apples to apples. When shopping for stump prices, it is important to keep the following in mind:

• How deep is the stump going to be ground?

• Are the major roots going to be chased?

• What is going to happen to the stump grindings?

     Standing dead is in reference to a tree which has died but is still in the upright position. Standing dead trees can be very dangerious to people and pets. The trees can drop branches without notice or can fall over much easier than healthy trees. Once a tree dies, the decompostion process starts and weakens the tree more and more. Standing dead trees that have deteriorated can be very dangerious to remove safely.

     True's Tree Service defines a tree emergency as:

• A tree or limb, which is in a possition to cause immediate harm to people, pets and/or personal property

• A tree that has fallen and caused a situation where the fallen tree if not removed will continue to cause further harm to people, pets and/or personal property.

  Examples:

• A tree that has come down and punctured a roof.

• A tree that has come down and has landed on utility lines.

• A tree that has snapped and is hung-up where people, pets or personal property may become harmed by the part of the tree coming free and traveling the rest of the way down.

     The length of time that is required to remove a tree varies greatly from the size of a tree to the physical number of trees being removed. True's Tree Service completes most tree jobs in one business day. There are situations where when dealing with large numbers of trees that a job may take two or three days.

     True's Tree Service quotes stump removals as a separate line item on our proposals. We do this for a couple of reasons. This allows our customers to shop around for stump removal prices and compare apples to apples. When shopping for stump prices, it is important to keep the following in mind:

• How deep is the stump going to be ground?

• Are the major roots going to be chased?

• What is going to happen to the stump grindings?

     The foremost reason that people consider removing a stump is for safety. Stumps are a safety hazard that people and pets can stumble over. As a stump decomposes over the years, the stump will prove to becomes a further safety hazard as the wood becomes soft, insects move in. Bees, hornets and yellow jackets can use the stump as an easy access home. As the stump deteriorates, the likelihood of some one stepping into the decomposed material and twisting or breaking a leg or ankle become more prevalent.

     There are two common process for removing a stump.

• First and most common is to grind the stump.

• The second process to remove a stump is the use of heavy equipment to dig the stump out of the ground.

     Stump grinding is accomplished with the use of a tool called a stump grinder. The stump grinder looks like a very large circular saw. The cutting edge of a stump grinder eats away at the stump to dice up the stump matterial and mixes the stump grindings with the dirt that surrounded the stump.

     The normal depth that a stump gets ground to varies greatly depending on the service provider. True's Tree Service grinds stumps to a depth of 6" to 10" below the relative ground level.

     There are certain situations where grinding stumps to that depth is not practical, such if there is a large rock present or under ground utilities which would could become damaged during the stump grinding process.

     True's Tree Service does not believe in grinding the stumps to just below relative ground level. The reason that we believe that stumps should be ground much lower that relative ground level is that shallow ground stumps cause problems when trying to grow other vegetation over the removed tree site. If there is not enough of the stump removed, then grass and other plants will have a very hard time growing until the stumps rots out on its own.