Tree and palm tree service in Davenport and nearby

What tree and palm services do we offer?

Our tree and palm services cover tree trimming, palm tree trimming, tree removal, palm tree removal and complete tree and palm removal when a whole area needs clearing. Many yards in Celebration, Davenport, Four Corners, ChampionsGate and Clermont combine palms near the house and pool with shade trees along the street, and often something planted too close to the roof years ago.

How should palms be trimmed?

Palm trimming is one of the tree jobs most often done wrong in Florida. UF/IFAS’s guidance is clear:

• Never remove live, green, healthy fronds. A palm makes its food in those leaves.
• Leave yellowing or half-dead fronds too. They are often a sign of a nutrient deficiency, and the palm is pulling nutrients out of them into the new growth.
• Remove fully brown fronds, flower stalks and fruit stalks. That is safe at any time of year.
• No "hurricane cut." UF/IFAS research after the 2004–05 storms found that palms stripped down to a few fronds were more likely to have their crowns snapped off.
• No climbing spikes, and no cuts into the trunk. UF/IFAS says spike wounds never heal and trunk wounds can let in Thielaviopsis trunk rot.

How should trees be pruned?

UF/IFAS calls correct pruning the most important thing you can do to help trees survive hurricanes: remove dead branches, shorten branches that are too long, and thin the outer canopy, never the interior, so wind passes through. UF/IFAS advises against anyone who advertises topping, the stub-cutting of big limbs; it is never part of our work. For trees taller than about 15 feet, UF/IFAS recommends hiring an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) certified arborist, and getting the work done before hurricane season.

Getting ready for hurricane season

The Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30, and NOAA puts its peak on September 10. Spring is the time to have trees looked at: dead limbs over the roof, branches rubbing the house, palms with dead fronds and seed pods that turn into projectiles. Remember that a palm stripped of green fronds is weaker in wind, not stronger.

Do you need a permit to remove a tree?

Tree rules differ between Osceola, Polk and Lake counties and the cities inside them, and many HOAs have their own. Florida law (s. 163.045, F.S.) says a local government can’t require a permit, fee or replanting for removing a tree on a single-family residential lot when an ISA-certified arborist or a Florida-licensed landscape architect documents that the tree poses an unacceptable risk. That law doesn’t cover HOA rules. For any other removal, check with your city or county first; we can help you find out what applies.

Where we work

See our tree and palm pages for palm trimming in Davenport, palm trimming in Celebration, tree removal in Clermont and tree removal in Four Corners. After a removal, our lawn care team can sod the ground so it reads as part of the yard.

Sources

• UF/IFAS ENH1182/EP443 — Pruning Palms
• UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions — Pruning Palms
• UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions — Preparing Trees for Hurricanes
• UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions — Pruning and Maintaining Trees
• NOAA National Hurricane Center — Tropical cyclone climatology
• Florida Statutes §163.045 — Tree pruning, trimming or removal on residential property