AFFORDABLE TREE REMOVAL SERVICE IN Auburn, CA

What Are the Most Common Tree Issues in Auburn?

Located on the western side of California’s Sierra Nevada, Auburn is heaven for outdoor recreation enthusiasts. One of its claims to fame is as home to the 100-mile Western States trail running race. Mountain bikers, hikers, and horseback riders also enjoy the trails of the Auburn State Recreation Area, located along the American River. Even whitewater enthusiasts can get their thrills on the river.

While enjoying the great outdoors, those who flock to or live in Auburn can enjoy the enormous variety of trees that grow in the area. Auburn is proud of its trees: it even offers a Tour of Treasured Trees highlighting particularly impressive specimens in and around the town. Of course, as is the case anywhere, a once-beautiful tree in Auburn might begin showing signs of disease, infestation, or age, and may eventually need to be removed.

Auburn’s trees are more subject to stresses than trees in many other regions of the country. The largest issue facing trees in the area is the five years of drought that have had a severe impact on local trees. The many years of insufficient precipitation have weakened local trees and made them susceptible to the effects of the native bark beetle. In drought-stressed trees, bark beetles can proliferate quickly and nearly unchecked, creating a landscape similar to one ravaged by fire. This is because when trees are stressed, they are often incapable of producing the defensive pitch necessary to thwart invading beetles.

If you are an Auburn resident with trees on your property, it is recommended that you keep a close eye on your trees for signs of possible bark beetles. This includes the following recommendations from the Placer Resource Conservation District:

• Identify your trees to determine if they are susceptible
• Determine if trees have already been attacked
• Take measures to prevent further pest attack & spread
   

• Thin forest stands
• Promote diversity of species and age structure
• Act quickly if an invasion occurs
• Reach out to our professionals

Does the City of Auburn Provide Any Assistance in Tree Removal Problems?

As a result of the drought and resultant bark beetle infestations, Placer County created the Placer County Tree Mortality Task Force in 2016. The Task Force was responsible for organizing the removal of thousands of dead or dying trees that threatened county infrastructure.

Property owners also play a significant role in keeping the area safe from the dangers of diseased trees. In general, it is the responsibility of property owners to remove dangerous trees on their land. Because of the widespread threat associated with the bark beetle, however, in some cases there may be assistance available through organizations such as the Placer County Resource Conservation District and the county’s Fire Safe Alliance, depending on funding availability.

USDA Rural Development may also have funding to assist with hazard tree removal for very low-income homeowners in rural areas. The key eligibility criteria are as follows:

• Must own home and land in the rural area (cannot be farm or ranch)
• Must occupy the home
• Must be inside the “Very Low Income” bracket
• Funds must be used for “Health & Safety” purposes
• Loans:
  

• Applicants must show creditworthiness
• Must show repayment ability to repay a loan based on monthly budget cash flow
• Terms: Up to $20,000 at 1% fixed interest for a maximum term of 20 years.
• Deed of Trust taken if a loan exceeds $7,500.
• Grants:
  

• Applicants must be 62 or over
• Applicants’ monthly budget cash flow shows that they cannot repay a loan.
• The lifetime maximum grant limit is $7,500.

Who Is Responsible for Fallen Tree Removal in Auburn?

A general principle in issues related to trees in California is that a tree is yours to deal with if it is on your property. As a result, if your tree were to fall over due to disease or storm damage, you would be responsible, as the landowner, for having it removed. Of course, life is never quite as simple as we would like it to be, so there may be other factors to consider when it comes to tree responsibility. Homeowners, renters, and neighbors may all have different views of the subject.

If you’re a homeowner?

According to the Placer Resource Conservation District, “In most cases, dead or dying trees on private property are the responsibility of the property owner. If property owners are unfamiliar with tree harvesting practices, landowners should consult with a licensed professional forester or arborist. Local, state and federal governments, and utilities may remove trees from both public and private land if those trees pose a hazard to their infrastructure (roads, buildings, power, and water conveyance systems, etc,).”

The District also provides a chipper program as a low-cost option to help property owners reduce risk by converting large brush piles into biodegradable chips useful for mulching or landscaping.

If you’re a renter?

Tree maintenance is legally on the landlord in California, so unless your lease specifies otherwise, you should not be expected to remove trees from the property where you’re renting. If you see a problem with a tree, let your landlord know so that they can hire a professional to deal with the situation.

If you’re a landlord?

Because they are the property owner, a landlord will be expected to pay for the removal costs of any tree whose trunk is on his or her property that has become diseased or has died. The only possible exception to this would be if there was an arrangement spelled out in the lease that gave this responsibility to the tenant.

If you’re a neighbor?

In general, in California, if you’re a neighbor, you don’t have many rights when it comes to trees on another’s property, or even when it comes to branches from your neighbor’s property extending onto your own. In the state, trees belong entirely to the person on whose land the tree’s trunk is located, even if its roots and branches extend elsewhere. If a tree’s trunk is located on a property line, however, then the tree belongs to all parties.

For an in-depth rundown on California law related to trees and property lines, see this helpful guide from the Hastings Environmental Law Journal.

How Does the Soil Affect Trees in Auburn?

Much of the soil in Auburn is loam soil, which is soil composed mostly of sand and silt, with smaller amounts of clay. Loam is generally a useful type of soil for growing vegetation because it contains more nutrients than sandy soils while having better drainage than clay soils. There are certain limitations to the soil in Placer County, however. Much of the soil is on sloped terrain, which creates the potential for erosion that threatens trees. The depth of the bedrock is also listed as a constraint of the soil in many areas around Auburn.

Does Weather Affect Tree Health in Auburn?

As mentioned earlier, drought is a large concern in Auburn, as elsewhere in Northern California. Not only can drought contribute to issues such as bark beetle infestations, but it can also create extreme fire hazards. For this reason, residents of Auburn are urged to keep the trees on their property thinned, so that they will not create excessively combustible fuel in the event of a wildfire. For more information on how to prepare for a wildfire, see this helpful guide from the Placer County government.

What if Dead Trees Are Near Power Lines in Auburn?

PG&E conducts an ongoing maintenance program to keep trees located near property lines properly trimmed, or to remove them when needed. Should PG&E cut down a tree located on your property, they will leave the wood behind for you, as it is considered yours. Should you see dead trees on or near power lines, the best thing to do is to contact PG&E. They have skilled arborists who know how to properly trim or remove trees that are in danger of interfering with power lines. This is certainly not a task that you would want to undertake yourself.

How Much Does Tree Removal Usually Cost in Auburn?

As with many costs associated with homeownership, tree removal can be pricey. In Auburn, the average cost to remove a tree is around $661, although of course, many factors can make this either more or less expensive. A typical range for tree removal cost in Auburn is anywhere from $562 to $761. While this may seem like more than you’d like to pay, the alternative could be even worse. Dying trees have the potential to fall on your home or someone else’s, and in the worst cases could end up injuring other people. In these cases, you could be on the hook for much greater, more unpleasant costs. It’s always best to call us sooner and deal with such problems before they create larger ones.

Accessibility

If our arborists need to spend extra time or use extra technology to reach the tree in question, it will of course end up costing the customer more. After all, time is money! If a tree that you want to be removed is already on the ground in an easily accessible spot (near the road, for example), you are much more likely to end up with a lower bill than if your tree is up a steep hill behind your home, or if our arborist has to work around many other trees in trying to remove the one you’ve called about. Given the sloped terrain around Auburn, this may be something that you will need to consider.

Size

In the case of tree removal, it’s not necessarily true that bigger is better. The more work it is to remove a tree, the more it is going to cost the homeowner. Auburn is certainly known for having some large trees, including a wide variety of oaks. For this reason, it may end up seeming particularly pricey to have a tree removed in the Auburn area, but as mentioned above, the alternatives are usually worse.

Others

Some other factors that may contribute to increased costs include:

• You have made an emergency, after-hours request
• Heavy equipment is required
• There is high demand for tree removal services, such as after a wildfire

Now here are some things that might decrease the price:

• The tree turns out to be smaller than anticipated
• You have provided a good deal of advanced notice to our arborists
• The tree is easy to access
• No heavy equipment is required.