Tree Removal in Madison, WI

Tree removal in Madison rarely means notching a trunk and letting it fall across an open yard. On the near east side, in Marquette, Dudgeon-Monroe and the blocks around the lakes, a mature tree usually has a house, a garage, an alley or a neighbor's fence within reach. So it comes down in pieces: a climber or a lift takes off the limbs, then the trunk in sections, and anything too heavy to drop is lowered on ropes. Height matters to the price, but what sits under the tree, how a crew reaches it and whether the wood is sound matter just as much.

When a tree should come out

Some cases are clear: a tree that is dead, one with a large cavity or conks of fungus at the base, a trunk with a deep crack, or a fresh lean with the soil heaved up on one side. Others are judgment calls, like a healthy silver maple that has simply outgrown a small lot, a tree whose roots are lifting a garage slab, or one that drops limbs on the roof every winter. At the visit we tell you what we see and whether pruning could fix the problem instead. Taking a sound tree down is your call, and we will not push it.

Oaks have a calendar here

Under Madison General Ordinance 23.40(7), work on any oak in the city between April 1 and October 15 needs a permit from Urban Forestry, and that includes oaks on private lots. The permit is free, but it takes an inspection and some lead time. Fresh oak wounds and freshly cut oak stumps attract the sap beetles that carry oak wilt, according to the Wisconsin DNR, and the disease can then move to neighboring oaks through grafted roots. When an oak removal can wait, we plan it for late fall or winter. When it cannot, because the tree is cracked or hanging over the house, we go through the permit process with you.

Dead ash and brittle wood

Many of the removals we quote in Madison are ash killed by emerald ash borer, which the city first confirmed here in 2013. An ash that has been dead for a few years is unpredictable: limbs snap under a climber's weight, and pieces can break off while they are being lowered. Those trees often call for a lift instead of climbing, smaller cuts and a wider drop zone, which adds time. Removing a declining ash while the wood still holds together is almost always simpler and cheaper.

Wires, terraces and neighbors

We do not cut near energized MGE lines; the utility makes the line safe first, and then we take the rest of the tree. If the tree stands on the terrace between the sidewalk and the street, it is a city tree, and Urban Forestry decides whether it comes down. If limbs hang over a neighbor's yard, we lower them so nothing lands where it should not, and it helps to let the neighbor know the date in advance.

What happens to the wood

You choose: logs left in rounds, cut to firewood length, or hauled away, and brush chipped with the chips left for mulch or removed. Madison's curbside brush program takes pieces up to 8 inches thick and 8 feet long during the season, so large logs need another plan. Oak wood from a tree with oak wilt should stay on site or close by; the DNR advises covering it with 4 mil plastic until the bark loosens. The stump is a separate line on the quote, and grinding can happen the same day or later.