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Edited by Ali Lijee Edited by Ali LijeeIf you’ve been searching online for “tree felling near me” in the UK, you’ve come to the right place. Whether you need one or more trees felled, or require tree removal and disposal, TreeMend is your ideal choice for connecting with local tree surgeons and arborists anywhere in the UK.
If a tree falls in a forest, does anybody hear? If a tree falls on your house, car, or neighbour’s house, you better believe that you’ll get an earful. Don’t take risks and leave the job of tree felling to qualified professionals.
This guide aims to give you a better impression of tree felling as a service and how it’s commonly performed in the UK by tree surgeons and arborists.
Table of contents
- What is tree felling?
- Why is tree felling needed?
- Types of tree felling
- The tree felling process
- Tree felling notch cuts compared
- Professional tree felling vs DIY: how to decide
- How to get tree felling near you
- Tree felling in the UK: frequently asked questions
- Get a tree felling quote today
What is tree felling?
Tree felling is the process of removing a tree, typically to its lowest level and leaving only the stump and root system intact. It is commonly used in forestry and silviculture, but is also sometimes necessary for the trees of residential or commercial property owners, e.g. in private gardens.
The Woodland Trust and Forestry Commission strongly encourage homeowners to consider alternatives to tree felling unless absolutely necessary. Trees, dead or alive, can offer significant amenity value, serve as a nesting or roosting area for wildlife, and benefit the general public with comfort, shade, and improved air quality.
Trees may sometimes need to be felled for reasons such as safety, health, or aesthetics. Hazardous trees may pose significant risks to the health and safety of both people and property, and tree felling may be the only viable solution.
Tree felling vs tree removal: what’s the difference?
While both tree felling and tree removal both involve the felling of one or more trees, there are some key differences. Tree felling typically only refers to the felling of the tree down to a stump (1.2m or 4ft height is recommended) and the processing and removal of the bulk of the tree; tree removal often involves the complete removal of a tree and its stump.
Many homeowners looking to save money on tree removal will often forego stump grinding and simply have the bulk of the trunk and crown felled. While more expensive up front, getting the tree felled and stump removed all in one go is often cheaper than having a tree surgeon perform stump grinding later on.
Consider what your goal is for felling a tree and ask yourself what you intend to do with the land afterwards. If you intend to clear the land and reuse it for development, laying turf or planting vegetation, you should consider stump grinding and root removal to fully restore the soil.
If you simply want a tree gone as quickly and cheaply as possible, tree felling without any additional stump removal is preferable.
Why is tree felling needed?
Tree felling is usually considered a drastic measure and should be avoided whenever possible. Valid reasons for tree felling include:
- Personal safety: trees with cracked branches or a severely leaning or damaged trunk could fall over and cause serious injury or fatalities.
- Reduce damage to property: similarly, these trees could damage you or your neighbour’s property, such as cars, the house, a shed, etc.
- Containment of disease: dead or decaying trees can harbour diseases which could affect surrounding trees and vegetation.
- Aesthetics: while not the most compelling reason, an unsightly tree could detract from your property and you may prefer replanting a different species in its place.
Benefits of tree felling
Tree felling can bring about some benefits, including:
- Allows for replanting of new trees: whenever possible, you should replant a new tree (or at a 3:1 ratio) after having a tree felled.
- Frees up space on your property: tree felling frees up a lot of space, but you may need to have the stump removed to fully make use of that space.
- Aesthetics: felling an ugly, dead, or diseased tree can make your property look much better and give you an opportunity to replant a healthy new species.
Tree felling is sometimes needed as a last resort to remove trees that pose a danger to people, property, or are diseased
Types of tree felling
Chopping down a tree is something that really has no one-size-fits-all solution. Instead, every tree has different characteristics that may make some types of felling better than others.
The tree’s height, trunk diameter, species, and accessibility are all important considerations that a tree surgeon must consider before commencing work. Moreover, the presence of nesting birds or roosting bats may force them to cancel work altogether or to adapt their felling technique to preserve wildlife.
All of the below methods of tree felling are categorised as manual felling techniques. Mechanised felling involving heavy machinery such as feller bunchers or excavators may sometimes be used for a single tree or for multiple trees, however manual felling with a chainsaw tends to be much more common for private homes and gardens.
Straight felling
The simplest and most straightforward method of tree felling is straight felling, which involves making a cut so that the entire trunk and crown fall to the ground.
Straight felling is generally preferred when the tree is less than 50ft tall and has adequate clearance to fall and accommodate the width of the crown and all branches. Fruit trees like apple, cherry, and other small trees are ideal for straight felling.
Section dismantling
Tall trees 50ft or taller, or where ground clearance isn’t adequate for branches and the crown to fall down must generally be dismantled in sections. In confined urban spaces or where overhead utility lines may be a hazard, sectional felling helps to gradually remove large portions of the tree crown and trunk until the final cuts can be safely made from the ground.
Tree surgeons will typically use a mobile elevated work platform or rigging gear to climb the tree and perform selective pruning cuts on large branches, followed by controlled cuts of the trunk until the trunk can be felled safely from the ground.
Soft felling
If nesting birds, roosting bats, or other protected wildlife have inhabited the tree, felling may be prohibited or restricted to soft felling techniques. Tree surgeons and arborists must abide by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and/or other relevant legislation if active nests are discovered. Failure to abide by this legislation can be reported as a criminal offence.
When permissible to fell an inhabited tree, a tree surgeon will have to adjust the felling technique to allow wildlife to vacate the tree. Woodpecker holes or other holes or cavities inside of the tree used as wildlife habitats require controlled felling cuts, in sections, which should all be laid out on the ground for no less than 24 hours. Afterwards, the tree sections can be processed and removed.
Unless nesting birds or protected wildlife have inhabited the tree, straight felling or sectional dismantling are the most common forms of tree felling used by tree surgeons
The tree felling process
Tree felling is an incredibly dangerous task that unfortunately leads to many critical injuries and fatalities in the UK every year. One can only imagine the hazards to people and property that a massive old tree can pose.
Consequently, all tree surgeons and arborists in the UK who provide tree felling must have requisite training on proper chainsaw use, wear PPE and rigging equipment, work in teams, and abide by industry best practices for tree felling.
While the exact process will differ from one tree to another, depending on its species, height, trunk diameter, the elevation of the terrain and the inclination of the tree, the general process tends to be as follows:
Pre-felling planning & preparation
Before felling a tree, a tree surgeon must ensure that the tree has been assessed. A visual inspection can reveal unique challenges such as felling lines (direction of planned fall) and clearance underneath, obstructions such as power lines or nearby structures, and current wind conditions that could affect the direction of the fall.
Furthermore, the tree surgeon must ensure that the tree is not protected by a Tree Preservation Order (TPO) or a Covenant Area. Generally, trees located in private areas do not have a TPO or restrictions on felling, but it is nevertheless essential to ensure that the tree can legally be felled with a tree assessment.
Tree felling licenses are generally not required for trees located in private gardens, but you should always be cautious and obtain a license when required.
Emergency evacuation route planning
The tree surgeon must plan out where they can safely run to once the final cut has been made and the tree begins to fall. An evacuation route is the first and most important consideration one can make for personal safety as well as for the safety of others.
When a safe evacuation route is not available, the tree surgeon must reconsider the felling technique and pursue alternative techniques like sectional dismantling until the remaining trunk can be felled safely.
Clearance of obstructions
Before felling the tree, the tree surgeon must clear the site to be free of obstructions that could interfere with the felling line and the planned impact area underneath.
Permissions may be necessary for trees that must be felled above public right-of-way, and tree surgeons may need to cordon off a street partially or fully to prevent pedestrian and vehicular access when works are underway.
Trunk pruning (optional)
For sectional dismantling, trees may require snedding (removal and stripping of branches and side shoots) and de-limbing. The tree surgeon will climb the tree with rigging equipment or a mobile elevated work platform and selectively prune branches and toss them down to a designated clearance area where team members will process the waste.
Once the crown has been pruned away sufficiently, the tree surgeon can begin topping off sections of the trunk and removing it in sections, either all the way down to the ground or down to a level where it’s safe to fell the remainder of the trunk.
Notch cut & undercut
For straight felling or felling trunks that have been de-limbed, the main felling technique used by tree surgeons is to create a notch cut to guide the fall to a preferred felling line.
The tree surgeon will use sights on their chainsaw and assess the best felling line for the tree, then perform a notch cut on the side pointing in the direction of the felling line.
The notch cut may be angled on one end or both. The tree surgeon starts with the angled cut then follows up with a horizontal cut (for simple notches) until the notch can be removed by hand. The notch depth may be as little as one-tenth (10%) of the tree’s diameter, or it may be as much as 20-25%. The notch angle should be at least 45°.
A second undercut on the opposite side is sometimes made partway through the tree a few inches above the hinge where the notch angle meets.
For the sake of simplicity, the below graph demonstrates a conventional notch, undercut, and final cut (back cut) commonly used by tree surgeons.
Back cut
Once the notch has been made, a back cut is then performed from the opposite side of the notch, i.e. the side facing away from where the felling line is. The back cut is made a few inches above the hinge, or a little above the undercut if one was made.
This cut goes completely through the tree to the hinge and should be horizontal with few exceptions. The tree will then succumb to its own weight and begin to fall in the direction of the notch.
While the notch gives great predictability over the first half of the fall, there may be some unpredictability over the second half of the fall. For this reason, the clearance area should be generously larger than anticipated and the tree surgeon should carefully select the appropriate type of notch for the situation at hand to exert maximal control over this critical step.
Garden waste processing and removal
Once the tree has been felled, the bulk of the tree trunk and crown must be removed. The tree surgeon will begin to process the garden waste by cutting through sections of the trunk, pruning large branches, and feeding any manageably small waste through a chipper.
The chippings can be used as a fantastic mulch for your garden, whilst sawdust can be layered with compostable organic materials in your compost bin.
Large sections of the trunk can be used as firewood or used as garden furniture or art pieces. Garden waste removal is typically included in the total quoted price from your tree surgeon, and all garden waste should naturally be disposed of in an environmentally friendly manner.
Tree felling notch cuts compared
As one of the most important steps in the tree felling process, it’s worth exploring some of the most common notches (or wedges) that are made for trees.
All three of these notches are common in the UK and have various advantages and disadvantages.
Conventional and Humboldt notches both help guide the fall well for the first half, but shearing forces and rolling may cause the tree to affect a wider area than anticipated during the second half. Conventional cuts tend to do a better job of preserving the remaining stump; Humbolt notches tend to better preserve the butt end but can be more challenging for tree surgeons to perform.
Open-face notches tend to do a much better job of guiding the fall throughout, which may be ideal in confined spaces where clearance is limited. On the downside, the shear may not be complete and the hinge may be left intact, requiring the tree surgeon to manually snip the hinge with their chainsaw after felling.
Alternative notch cuts
Other notches exist for specific purposes and in specific contexts. For example, the above cuts are all ideal as standard cuts for simple, upright trees on reasonably flat terrain.
Trees leaning backwards, with an asymmetrical canopy, or upright on sloped terrain are often notched with a split level or Danish Pie notch.
Trees leaning forward slightly are often best served with a Dogtooth notch; heavy leaning may require Dogtooth or Double V notch cuts.
A qualified tree surgeon or arborist near you should be sufficiently trained on these notch types and be able to determine the optimal cut for your specific tree.
Tree notch cuts are designed to safely guide the direction of the fall and are essential
Professional tree felling vs DIY: how to decide
Due to the inherent dangers of tree felling, it’s a job that is almost always best left to a professional tree surgeon. That being said, some tree felling jobs may be reasonable to DIY.
Generally, only attempt to fell small trees that can be safely felled without the need to climb the tree. Small fruit trees and trees with a small diameter are reasonable to fell yourself.
If using a chainsaw, wear chaps, gloves, a helmet, and long-sleeved clothing and operate the chainsaw according to the manufacturer’s instructions at all times. Never leave the chainsaw unattended and prioritise safety above all else.
For any tall trees that require sectional dismantling, have thick diameters, or that may have become a habitat for protected wildlife, refrain from DIY jobs and hire a professional tree surgeon or arborist near you instead.
With few exceptions, tree felling should always be left to trained and qualified tree surgeons and arborists
How to get tree felling near you
Tree felling and tree removal are common services provided by most tree surgeons and arborists. Some landscape contractors and gardeners may be able to assist with tree felling, but any serious work should always be carried out by qualified and experienced tree surgeons with requisite training on working from heights, chainsaw use, and a robust understanding of the UK’s tree felling legislation to ensure you as the homeowner remain compliant with the law.
The best way to save time and money on tree felling is to leave the heavy-duty work to a tree surgeon or arborist near you.
Get no-obligation quotes for tree felling near you by using TreeMend
Tree felling in the UK: frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to fell a tree?
As outlined in our tree surgeon pricing guide, the average cost of tree felling in the UK ranges from around £305 to £1,750. The cost varies substantially based on the tree's height, diameter, accessibility, species, and the amount of labour required. Small fruit trees may cost around £250 to £385 to remove, while a mature old English oak could easily cost £2,925 or more.
What is the cheapest time of year for tree removal?
The cheapest time of year for tree removal and felling tends to be in late winter, from February to March. This time of year is often the low season for tree surgeons and arborists and prices may be substantially lower than in busier seasons.
Why is tree felling so expensive?
Tree felling tends to be quite expensive because it is an extremely dangerous task that can be quite labour-intensive, time-consuming, requires specialised equipment and assets, and often carries high insurance premiums and overheads. Tree surgeons and arborists are paid little more than (if at all) the national living wage and perform a physically demanding job, but the dangers and costs of doing business drive up costs for homeowners and it can appear quite expensive.
Is tree felling illegal?
Tree felling in the UK is illegal if the tree is protected by a Tree Preservation Order (TPO) or is otherwise subject to restrictions on felling or management of the tree. Generally, trees located in private gardens can be felled by homeowners. Nevertheless, it is always wise to check with your local planning authority whether or not a tree can be felled.
Who needs a tree felling licence?
Anyone involved in tree felling requires a felling license unless they meet certain exemptions. Tree felling license in England, for example, has numerous exemptions based on factors like tree timber volume per calendar year or quarter. Generally, you will not require a license to fell a tree on your property but it is nevertheless a good idea to hire a tree surgeon who can determine whether a license is required or not.
How many trees are 5 cubic metres?
5 cubic metres’ worth of timber volume is roughly equivalent to around a dozen medium-sized trees. Trees with thick trunks and large canopies will skew this downwards, whilst trees with trunks thinner than roughly the size of a Heinz baked beans can will skew it upwards. If you aren’t certain about whether or not you’ve exceeded the timber volume limit for a felling license, consult this calculator to estimate the volume felled.
When to cut down a tree?
You should generally refrain from cutting down a tree unless necessary. Circumstances where you should cut down a tree include: if the tree is diseased and can spread disease to nearby vegetation, if the trunk is hollowed out, split, or otherwise damaged and at risk of falling over, if the trunk is leaning heavily to one side, the tree is located too close to a building and its roots are damaging the foundation wall, or the tree must be removed for a new development.
When not to cut trees?
Trees should generally not be cut and alternative solutions should be pursued instead, such as crown reduction or selective pruning (for veteran trees). Furthermore, trees harbouring protected wildlife or that are protected by a Tree Preservation Order (TPO) or are located within a Conservation Area should not be felled unless permissions are granted.
What is the proper sequence for felling a tree?
After preparing the site and having an emergency escape route, the first step in felling a tree is to perform a notch cut. Beginning with an angled cut, either from the top or bottom, and followed by a horizontal (or another angled) cut, the notch can be completed. From the opposite side of the notch, a horizontal undercut should be made a few inches above the notch hinge. A complete back cut should be made a few inches above the undercut (if one was made), going straight through the tree until hitting the hinge and thus allowing the tree to fall in the direction of the notch.
What is the best cut for tree felling?
The best cut for tree felling is whichever the tree surgeon deems best based on the tree’s trunk height and diameter, incline, accessibility, and other factors. Generally, most tree surgeons in the UK use conventional, Humboldt, and open-face notches for everyday tree felling in private homes and gardens. Specialised notches and sectional dismantling of trees are often used in particular circumstances and qualified tree surgeons should have adequate knowledge of these types of processes.
Get a tree felling quote today
We’ve come a long way since lumberjacks hacked away at trees with nothing more than an axe and pure grit, yelling “timber!” Nowadays, it’s quick and easy to connect with professional tree surgeons and arborists, who use the best chainsaws and tools of the trade to ensure your tree is felled safely, quickly, and with minimal disturbance to you and your neighbours.