Selecting a tree service should be considered carefully. Plants are living things. Trees and shrubs add beauty and value to your property and deserve proper care.

Start your search by consulting the Yellow Pages or search online. The size of the ad does not indicate the size of the company, and the size of the company does not indicate the quality of the work. Experience, training, and proper procedures ensure professional performance.

If you are getting comparison bids, you may find they vary considerably. One bid of $1500 might include careful pruning according to National Arborist Association Standards and performed by a trained, reputable and insured firm. A bid of $200 on the same job might be a quick butcher job by an uninsured, disreputable firm. Be aware that bids of near the same amount may not represent equivalent quality of work.The important thing about gathering comparative bids is that each firm estimates the same work, and that you understand the quality of work provided. Word of mouth by satisfied customers is a good indication of the quality of a firm's work.

Choose an established service. Beware of firms that have no history, background or credibility. Your best bet is a well-known locally established firm. Deal only with a firm that carries Workman's Compensation Insurance and Liability Insurance as required by state law. This insurance should cover tree care operations and not merely landscaping. Insist on being provided with Certificates of Insurance for Workman's Compensation and Property Liability Insurance. Just because an ad states "Fully Insured" or a business card says "Insured" does not mean that they have insurance. The reputable firm welcomes the opportunity to demonstrate responsibility.

Look for affiliation with professional trade associations and Certification. A firm that actively supports their professional trade associations indicates a management policy of staying informed of the latest technology. Professional associations have Standards of Performance that are arborculturally correct and ethical.

Topping, also called "Heading Back" or "Hatracking", refers to the removal of major portions of a tree's crown by cutting branches indiscriminately. Topping severely injures trees. It sometimes kills them outright.

Why would a tree owner ask to have a tree topped? There seems to be two main reasons: 1) Concern for safety - possibility of blowdown. etc. 2) Misguided intent to save money - accepting a low bid in the absence of clear specificatons.

Correctly pruned trees are not often apparent to the untrained eye, whereas "topped" trees are very apparent. The examples of quality tree care frequently go unnoticed while the mutilated victims of topping serve as a standard for tree care.

Topping destroys the natural form of a tree. It stimulates excessive, undesirable gowth and quickly defeats the original purpose of pruning. Restorative pruning, over time, can slowly bring back the natural shape after a tree has been topped. A tree's life is sharply reduced by topping and the resultant decay weakens the limbs and trunk.

Topping lowers tree values. A low bid to top a tree becomes the most expensive method when considering the loss of tree value and the increasing maintenance costs required to preserve an unnatural form. Topping cannot make a tree safe, it causes more problems.

Those who ignore proper tree care and top trees, ensure long loss to everyone, especially the tree.