Tree Service in Alhambra, CA

Alhambra calls itself a city of homes, and that history is why tree service here so often means pruning a large, mature tree that is far older than its current owners. The city has 26 designated historic single-family neighborhoods, including the Bean Tract, Midwick Tract, Airport Tract and the Emery Park area, where Craftsman, bungalow and Spanish revival houses sit under canopies that took generations to grow.

Why trimming comes first here

About 23% of Alhambra's housing was built in 1939 or earlier, and the median home dates to 1960. Trees on those lots have usually been pruned many times by many different hands. Some were topped decades ago and regrew as clusters of weakly attached shoots. Others were never thinned and now carry long, heavy limbs over a roof with a low pitch and old shingles.

Good trimming on a tree like that is selective. We take out dead and crossing wood, shorten limbs that load toward the house, and reduce weight at the ends instead of chopping the top. The goal is a tree that still looks like itself, stands up to wind better and keeps shading the house.

What we watch for around older houses

• Limbs resting on or rubbing the roof, gutters or a chimney
• Roots lifting a narrow driveway or a front walk poured decades ago
• Branches growing into the service drop from the pole to the house
• Decay at old pruning cuts, which often shows up as hollow spots or fungus
• Trees planted tight against a detached garage or a block wall

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Removal, when it is the right call

Sometimes a tree has too much decay, leans toward the house or is simply the wrong tree for a small lot. When removal makes sense, we take it down in sections and lower the pieces so they do not land on a porch roof, a fence or the neighbor's yard. We can grind the stump afterward so the space can be replanted with something better sized for the lot.

Trees and Alhambra's growth debates

Trees have been a public topic in Alhambra. When the St. Clair development was proposed, early plans would have removed 265 of the 268 trees on the 12-acre site, and the city council later scheduled a June 2018 public hearing on a residential tree ordinance. Before major work on a large tree, especially near a property line or as part of a remodel, check with the city's development services about current rules. We can tell you what we see on the tree and what a permit question looks like, and you get the final answer from the city.

Wind season

Alhambra was one of the San Gabriel Valley cities hit hard in the December 2011 windstorm. Damage in storms like that comes mostly from trees with dead wood, decay or heavy end weight. If you have a large tree over the house, an inspection before the fall wind season is worth the time.

Call (626) 594-4788 to set up a visit. We walk the yard with you, explain what each cut is for and leave a written estimate.