Services

Enhance the health and appearance of your trees in London with our professional tree pruning, crown thinning, and crown reduction services. Our skilled arborists ensure structural integrity, increased light levels, and a well-balanced tree canopy for safety and longevity.

North London Tree Surgeon
Tree pruning in North London

Tree Pruning

Enhance the health and appearance of your trees in London with our professional tree pruning, crown thinning, and crown reduction services. Our skilled arborists ensure structural integrity, increased light levels, and a well-balanced tree canopy for safety and longevity.

As a result each tree is unique and requires an individual approach. At Custom Cutters appropriate works are tailored to every tree requiring pruning pruning resulting in a variety of specifications. The most common aspects of tree pruning which are likely to be specified are as follows:

Tree removal in North London

Tree Removal

We remove trees of many different shapes and sizes. Trees have to be removed for different reasons:

Therefore tree removal is a necessary part of a managing any landscape and it can lead to the loss of amenity value. However, the positive side of removing a tree is that is provides an opportunity to plant a vigorous young tree. Trees being felled where there is enough space surrounding a tree it may be felled from ground level.

Trees being dismantled In gardens where space is confined, trees are dismantled using up to date rigging methods to ensure targets surrounding the tree are not damaged. This is a safe and efficient method of removing a tree. Trees using Mobile Elevated Work Platforms where the access is available, a mobile elevated work platform may be used. This is generally required when trees are hazardous and dangerous, meaning that the climber is unable to enter the tree using a rope and harness. A mobile elevated platform is a safe method of removing the tree without having to work from within it.

Hazard assessment

Hazard Assessment

At Custom Cutters, when we make a site visit to offer advice, recommendations, provide an estimate or carry out a tree survey, a hazard assessment is always made on the trees we are viewing. The recognition and assessment of defects is an essential part of arboriculture and this is the first service we aim to deliver when viewing a tree. Our fully qualified arboriculturists have a full understanding of hazards and defects and this allows us to provide suitable recommendations for the management of your trees for the long term.

Hazard assessment is important to identify the following common problems associated with trees. Such hazards need to be identified for reasons of health and safety, the management of duty of care and for the health of the tree itself.

Some of the common problems include:

  • Tight branch unions
  • Over-extended limbs
  • Minimal root flare

Common examples include:

Decay and diseases result in the following types of problems:

Hedging in North London

Hedging

We provide a professional hedge trimming service. Hedges are trimmed using either shears and secateurs or with hedge trimmers depending on the species and size. We commonly hedge the following plants but this list is by no means exhaustive:

Stump grinding

Stump Grinding

When trees are being removed, we offer the service of stump grinding. With stump-grinders of different sizes we are able to offer this service even to customers who have restricted access to rear gardens. Stump grinding involves the full removal of the tree stump to below ground level. The removal of a stump is achieved by grinding below the surface by a minimum depth of 300mm using a mechanical grinder. The hole is then backfilled with either the stumpgrindings or topsoil depending on the location of the tree. If the tree stump is located very visually, such as within a lawn area, or a replacement tree is being replanted in the exact same location, the hole is backfilled using topsoil. The new topsoil allows for the area to be used again for replanting, turfing or paving immediately.

Tree planting in North London

Tree & Shrub Planting

At Custom Cutters we provide a comprehensive planting service. We have extensive experience in all aspects of planting varying from small shrubs to mature trees with an immediate and impressive visual impact. The care provided for a tree when planting is very important in ensuring the establishment and long term health of the plant. Good planting methods can significantly reduce the stress placed on the plant at the time of planting.

The ideal time to plant trees and shrubs is during the dormant season from November through to March. At this time the ground is cold enough for tree roots to become established without the stress of the spring and summer heat which promotes foliage growth. Trees properly cared for can be planted throughout the growing season from April to October if proper handling is undertaken. If planted at this time, an adequate watering management programme needs to be implemented. In addition, the trees need to be correctly transplanted and handled.

Different trees are appropriate for different locations and we will provide recommendations on the most suitable species for each situation. We are able to try and source any tree you are looking for but in case you need some ideas, the most commonly planted tree species we are planting at present are as follows:

  • Amelanchier arborea Robin Hill
  • Amelanchier lamarckii
  • Arbutus unedo
  • Betula utilis jacquemontii
  • Corylus colurna
  • Ginkgo biloba
  • Gleditsia triacanthos Sunburst
  • Lagerstromeia indica Rosea
  • Ligustrum japonicum
  • Liquidambar styraciflua
  • Liriodendron tulifirea
  • Metasequoia glyptostroboides
  • Nyssa sylvatica
  • Parrotia persica
  • Pittosporum tenuifolium
  • Pyrus chanticleer
  • Taxus baccata
  • Thuja plicata
Propping and bracing

Propping & Bracing

We offer a propping and bracing service for trees which clients wish to retain but require support. For trees with sentimental value and/or historical importance which are to be retained we offer a service of propping. The suitability of propping will be determined after a complete evaluation of the tree taking into account health and safety issues species suitability and the age and overall condition. Bracing carried out for trees with high amenity value forks slit forks / tight forks so tree is retained. However, this technique is not as commonly used as previously as if there are structural defects within the tree recommendations are crown reducing these days.