Decatur changed its rules in 2022 and it caught a lot of homeowners out: you can no longer take down three healthy trees every eighteen months. Almost every legitimate removal here now starts with an arborist risk assessment.
Tree services we provide in Decatur
- Tree removal — hazardous, dead, storm-damaged or in-the-way trees, including crane-assisted and tight-access removals.
- Tree trimming and pruning — crown thinning, deadwooding and clearance from roofs, drives and lines, cut to ISA standards rather than topped.
- Stump grinding — ground below grade with surface roots taken out, cleaned up and the grade restored.
- Storm damage response — trees on structures, blocked driveways, hangers and split leaders.
- Tree health diagnostics — an ISA Certified Arborist diagnoses decline, pests and disease and writes a treatment plan instead of guessing.
- Cabling and bracing — structural support for split trunks, weak unions and heavy horizontal limbs worth saving.
- Lot and land clearing — selective or full clearing for building, drainage or reclaiming overgrown ground.
What makes tree work in Decatur different
Decatur is four and a half square miles at more than five thousand people per square mile — small lots, close-set houses, and a canopy of very large mature willow and water oaks that went in through the 1920s to 1950s across Oakhurst, Winnona Park and the MAK district. The Eastern Continental Divide bisects the city along the CSX right of way. The practical consequence is that nearly every job here is a confined-access rigging and lowering job rather than a straight fell.
Tree removal permits in Decatur
Yes, and Decatur is the most restrictive jurisdiction we work in. Under the Tree Canopy Conservation Ordinance effective March 2022, a removal permit is required for an untreatably diseased or infested tree, or for a tree carrying a moderate or higher risk rating as determined by a certified arborist, supported by that arborist’s written assessment and filed through the city’s online system. The old allowance for three healthy trees every eighteen months was eliminated. Dead trees are simpler: a completed dead tree affirmation statement plus photos, with no arborist assessment required. Permits generally process within ten business days.
Where we work in Decatur
We are on jobs across Decatur regularly, including Oakhurst, Winnona Park, the MAK Historic District, Clairemont, Decatur Square and the streets around Agnes Scott College. Decatur is the seat of DeKalb County.
Why Decatur homeowners call us
- Every job is scoped by an ISA Certified Arborist, not a salesperson — so you get a straight answer on whether a tree has to come down.
- Family-owned and working in Metro Atlanta since 1985, from our yard on Nekoma Street in Marietta.
- Fully licensed and insured, and TrustDale certified.
- Written estimates before any work starts, and no charge for the estimate.
- Open seven days a week, 7am to 11pm, including storm days.
- We clean up. Chips, brush and rounds go with us unless you want the wood.
Decatur tree service questions
Do I need a permit to remove a tree in Decatur, GA?
Yes, and healthy trees are no longer removable by right. Since March 2022 Decatur requires a permit supported by a certified arborist’s risk assessment showing the tree is untreatably diseased or carries a moderate or higher risk rating. Dead trees are handled separately with an affirmation statement and photos. Our arborists write the assessment and file the permit; allow about ten business days.
How much does tree removal cost in Decatur?
Price comes down to height, trunk diameter, what is underneath the tree and how much room we have to work. A straightforward pine in an open back yard is a completely different job from a seventy-foot oak leaning over a roof with no room for a crane. We price on site, in writing, and the estimate is free.
Can you get your equipment into my yard?
Almost never straight in, and that is fine — we plan for it. Decatur lots are narrow with houses close on both sides and big oaks directly over rooflines, so these come down in pieces on a lowering line. Where the street allows a crane we use one, which shortens the job considerably.
Free tree service estimate in Decatur
Tell us what you are looking at and we will come out, put eyes on the tree and give you a written price. Call (770) 974-3964 or request an estimate online. Financing is available, and new customers get 20% off.
