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Tree Trimming in Pleasant Valley

Right next door to Camino, Pleasant Valley is served too. Phone (530) 248-6054, name your road, and say what tree it is. A pro who works this stretch will be booked to stop by.

A little community

Where Pleasant Valley sits

To the south, 3.5 miles from Camino and up at 2,461 feet, lies Pleasant Valley. Its post office served from 1864 until 1917. The community is small, but the trees are not.

At that height you're in black oak country. The UC Master Gardener oak sheet says black oaks grow between 2,000 and 6,000 feet, and that they lose their leaves in fall. So a typical oak in a Pleasant Valley yard drops its leaves, and that tells you when to prune.

Black oaks

Prune in winter, and go easy

Deciduous oaks get their cuts in winter, says UC. Evergreen oaks wait until summer. If yours turns brown and drops its leaves, it's a winter tree.

Most oaks need less than you'd guess. UC's sheet boils oak care down to a list of things not to do. One of them: leave the fallen leaves alone, since they work as mulch. Keep mulch away from the trunk and the buttress roots, those wide flares at the base. And don't fertilize around oaks.

Watch the string trimmer too. UC says damage from string trimmers lets pathogens in. A ring of bare ground around the trunk, or a ring of mulch pulled back a bit, saves a lot of bark.

In spring, wet weather can bring anthracnose. UC says it can cause severe defoliation of new growth in wet spring weather. A tree that loses its new leaves in April isn't always dying.

When to call

Signs a pro should look

• A large, flat limb over the house, the drive or the walk.
• A crack or a split where a limb joins the trunk.
• Dead branches in the crown, even if the rest looks good.
• Round green clumps in winter, which could be mistletoe.

Flat limbs deserve special care. Summer branch drop strikes on hot, calm days, per UC, even on sound limbs. Big horizontal ones in a bad spot should come off.

Prices

What it costs

Small roads off the main drag are common here, and a pro will ask how wide yours is before choosing a truck.

For one oak, Fixr lists $175-$1,500 and LawnStarter lists $230-$1,480. A little tree is cheaper. Homeyou puts small tree trimming at $92-$248. Homeyou prices shape-and-health pruning at $248-$548.

Ask for the price in writing if you can, and check what's included. Does it cover hauling off the limbs? The pro will tell you.

The phone call

What to tell the pro

A clear description makes for a better first visit. Name the tree, and say if it sheds in fall. Guess the height. Mention wires, a sloped yard, a gate or a long dirt drive.

Then say what worries you. Is it a limb over the roof? A split? A tree that has lost its leaves too early? The more you say, the better we can match you with the right pro. If you do not know the tree, a photo of the bark and the leaves works wonders.

Close by

Nearby

Close by are Somerset, Apple Hill and Diamond Springs. See winter dormant pruning, or go back home.