Arborist in Tweed Heads, NSW
Working on trees across Tweed Heads and the river mouth
Trees in Tweed Heads stand along the Tweed River mouth, around Jack Evans Boat Harbour and up the rise toward Point Danger and the Razorback. Norfolk Island pines and palms line the older streets near the water, and coastal banksias and she-oaks hold on where the wind comes straight off the sea. Further back, in Tweed Heads West and toward Terranora, the trees are larger gums and figs in back gardens, many of them grown up through fences and over rooflines across several decades.
Access is the hard part here. Tweed Heads is a twin town with Coolangatta, and the streets near Boundary Street and Wharf Street are narrow, busy and lined with parked cars, so a truck often has to sit on the kerb while the crew works. Units and townhouses share driveways and side passages, which means cut timber is carried through instead of dropped. Near the river and the harbour, council reserve and private blocks sit side by side, so it pays to know whose tree it is first. Tweed Shire Council covers the NSW side.
The housing is a mix. Older brick and fibro houses sit on small blocks near the river, and apartment buildings stand close behind them, so roots run under slabs and canopies hang over balconies and roofs. Salt air burns foliage and the sea wind loads one side of a tree, so a pine or a gum can carry a lean that is hard to see from the ground. Low ground by the river takes water in a big flood, and wet, soft soil is when a tree with a weak root plate gives way.
What we do here most
Trees that outgrow tight Tweed Heads blocks
Most jobs here start with a tree that has more weight overhead than the block has room underneath, so how it comes down matters more than whether it does.
Crane-Assisted Tree Removal
A tall pine behind an apartment block
On a block with units on three sides there is nowhere to drop a big tree. A crane takes the weight of each section while a climber makes the cuts, and every piece is swung over the roof to a truck waiting on the street. The ground crew keep the drop zone clear and watch the rigging. It suits a Norfolk Island pine that has outgrown the space it was planted in.
Palm Tree Removal
Tall palms leaning over a harbour-side fence
Palms were planted along many older Tweed Heads streets and gardens, and they keep growing straight up. Dead fronds and seed pods drop onto cars, paths and pool decks long before the palm itself is a problem. A climber cleans them out, or takes the whole palm down in sections when it has grown into wires or past the roofline, and the trunk goes out in lengths.
Tree Pruning
Pruning salt-burnt gums before storm season
Wind off the ocean and a few hard summer storms are tough on Tweed Heads trees. Pruning takes out dead wood and heavy limbs that reach over roofs, and opens up a crowded canopy so the wind passes through it. Cuts go at the branch collar, not through the middle of a limb, so the tree can seal over and does not split.
Commercial Tree Services
Body corporate grounds and car parks near the harbour
Strata blocks, shop car parks and clubs close to the water have trees over cars, paths and pool areas. The work is planned around people and parked vehicles. A section is coned off, the crew work through it tree by tree, and timber and chips go on the truck instead of sitting in a visitor bay.
If it is urgent
If a limb or a pine comes down across a Tweed Heads driveway
- 1Keep people, pets and cars clear of the fallen timber, and stay well back from anything touching a wire.
- 2Do not climb the tree, do not cut a limb that is bent or under tension, and do not go near any wire.
- 3When you ring 0458 795 659, tell us the street, whether the tree is on the harbour side or the hill side of the block, and what it is leaning on.
Common questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Which areas do you cover?
Tweed Heads, the Tweed Coast, Murwillumbah and the Tweed Valley, and the southern Gold Coast as far as Palm Beach and Tallebudgera. Each place has its own page on the service areas page. If yours is not listed, ask, because the list is where we work most often rather than a boundary.
Do you work in Queensland as well as New South Wales?
Yes. The work crosses the border at Tweed Heads and Coolangatta and carries on through Gold Coast suburbs such as Currumbin, Elanora and Bilinga. Which council a tree falls under changes with the side of the border, and that can change what you need to check before a tree comes down.
Which tree jobs do you do?
Trimming, pruning, tree and limb removal, stump grinding, root removal, chipping and mulching, palm tree removal, land clearing and fire breaks, arborist services, commercial tree work, crane-assisted removal and emergency tree work. Each job has its own page on the services page.
Do you do emergency tree work?
Yes. Emergency tree service is one of the jobs on the services page. We are open 24 hours a day, Monday to Saturday, and closed on Sundays. Ring 0458 795 659, say what has come down and what it is lying on, and keep everyone well back until we have spoken.
What is the difference between pruning and lopping?
Pruning takes a branch off at the branch collar, the swelling where it joins the trunk, so the tree can seal the wound. Lopping cuts through a branch anywhere along its length and tends to leave a stub that decays. Pruning is the method for a tree that is staying.
What happens to the branches and the mulch?
Branches and leaves are put through a commercial chipper on site. You can keep the mulch for your garden beds or have it taken away, whichever suits the block.
How far down is a stump ground?
Below ground level, so the spot can go back to lawn, paving or a new planting. Roots are taken out as well when they need to be, and the chips and debris are dealt with as part of the job.
How often do palm trees need cleaning?
Once or twice a year is usual. The job is taking off the dead brown fronds, seed pods and berries that would otherwise land on paths, cars and people.
Do I need council permission to remove a tree?
Often you do, and it varies. Tree preservation rules depend on the council, the zoning, the size of the tree and whether it is a native or protected species. Check with your council before a large or protected tree comes down.
What is crane-assisted tree removal?
A crane takes the weight of each section while a climber makes the cuts, then lifts it clear. It is used for trees that are large, dangerous or too hard to reach any other way, such as ones standing over a house or close to power lines.
What should I tell you when I call?
Where the tree is, roughly how tall it is, what it stands near, such as a roof, fence, pool or wire, and whether it is leaning or has split. A photo taken from a safe distance helps. Say whether a truck can reach the back yard too.
What should I do if a tree or limb is touching a power line?
Stay well back, keep people and pets away, and do not touch the tree or anything it is touching. Treat the line as live and ring 000 if anyone is at risk. Once everyone is clear, ring the number at the top of this page and tell us what is touching what.
Everything we do here
Services in Tweed Heads, NSW
Every service below gets used in Tweed Heads, from palms and pines by the water to large trees on tight apartment lots.
Also nearby
We work in these suburbs too
Local, and on the phone
Tell us about your Tweed Heads tree
Send or say which street the tree is on, how close it stands to the house, fence or unit block next door, and whether a truck can reach the front. That tells us whether it is a climb, a crane lift or a ground job.
0458 795 65924 hours a day, Monday to Saturday
Not urgent? Send us the job instead