Tree Removal in Deerfield
Most removal calls from Deerfield sound alike. The tree went in when the house was built, it's now taller than the house, and it's in the wrong spot. A silver maple splitting at the fork. A spruce that's browned out from the bottom up. A honey locust dropping limbs on the patio.
On a typical Deerfield lot, the tree has a house on one side, a fence on two more, and wires along the back. So removing it is done in pieces. The crew works down from the top and lowers the wood into whatever open ground there is. The trunk comes down last, in sections short enough to control.
If you're tearing down and rebuilding, or adding on, trees often have to come out before the foundation work starts. Send photos and the timeline and you'll get a written price you can hand to your builder. Check with the village on permits before anything is cut.
Ash deserves a mention. Emerald ash borer killed most of the untreated ash in Lake County, and that took out a lot of street and yard trees in towns like this one. If a dead one is still standing on your lot, get the ash taken down while it's still solid enough to work on. It won't stay that way.
The Trees That Grow in Deerfield Yards
Deerfield grew up around the corner of Waukegan Road and Deerfield Road, and the oldest trees are in the blocks near there: big maples, some elms, and oaks that go back before the subdivisions. Farther out, the yards were planted when the houses went up, so you get silver maple, Norway maple, honey locust, crabapple and spruce, all about the same age and all hitting the same problems together.
The West Fork and Middle Fork of the North Branch of the Chicago River both pass through town, and the low ground beside them suits cottonwood and willow. Those are fast, soft-wooded trees. They get huge and they shed.
West toward Riverwoods and north toward Bannockburn, the lots get more wooded and the oaks get bigger.
Stump Grinding for Deerfield Lawns
A stump in the middle of the lawn is a mower hazard and an eyesore, and some trees keep sending up sprouts from it for years.
Stump grinding takes the stump down below the lawn so you can fill, level and seed. If you're putting in a patio, a fence post or a new foundation where the tree stood, say so. That can mean going deeper or taking more of the root flare, and it's better to plan for it than discover it later.
First, the utility locate. Call JULIE at 811. It's free, and in a subdivision yard the gas, electric and cable lines are often closer to that stump than you'd think.
You can keep the grindings as mulch or have them taken away.
Tree Trimming and Pruning in Deerfield
Not every big tree needs to go. A lot of them just need work. Pruning clears limbs off the roof and gutters, opens up the view from the driveway, and gets rid of deadwood before it falls on its own.
Late fall through winter is the right time for most trees. They're dormant and the cuts are easier on them. Oaks and elms shouldn't be pruned at all in the growing season, since fresh cuts attract the beetles that spread oak wilt. Broken or hazardous limbs are the exception and can come off any day of the year.
If the canopy is so thick that nothing grows under it, or branches hang down into the street or over the sidewalk, thinning or raising the crown fixes that without butchering the tree. What the crew won't do is top it. A topped tree grows back weak and ugly.
Storm Damage in Deerfield: Fallen Trees and Broken Limbs
Silver maples, willows and cottonwoods are fast growers with weak wood, and a summer storm will find the weak spots.
If a tree or limb has landed on your house or car, or it's across the driveway, pick up the phone: (224) 944-8652. Don't text an emergency. Storm calls get handled as fast as the crew can get to you.
If the tree took the service line down with it or is leaning into the wires along the back lot line, that's ComEd's job first. Stay away from it. The crew doesn't work in or touching power lines. After the power company clears it, storm damage cleanup covers cutting up the tree, hauling the brush and getting your yard usable again.
What Goes Into a Tree Service Price
The price doesn't change at the end of the job. It's flat, it's written down, and you agree to it before any cutting starts.
To get one, text a photo and your town to (224) 944-8652. Small jobs are quoted from photos. Large removals get a free visit first.
What it's based on: how big the tree is, where it's standing, whether it's healthy or dead and brittle, how easy it is to get equipment to it, and whether the stump is included. A back-yard tree behind a fence with wires overhead costs more than the same tree out front by the curb. The pricing guide spells that out.
Before You Remove a Tree: Village Permits
Many Lake County villages have rules about removing trees, and some require a permit even when the tree is in your own yard. Your village may require one. Check with village hall first.
Don't count on your tree service to know. Rules are different in every town and they get revised. A quick call to the village before you schedule saves you from finding out the hard way.
Trees in the parkway, the strip between the sidewalk and the street, are often the village's responsibility and not yours. If that's the tree you're worried about, the village is the first call.
Brush, Logs and Cleanup
Cleanup is part of the job, not an extra. Brush is chipped. Logs are cut and hauled. The lawn, patio and driveway get raked off before the crew leaves.
Illinois doesn't allow yard waste in landfills, so the chips and wood get recycled. If you want firewood, ask before the job and the wood is left cut where you want it.
Lakefront Tree Service is insured, based in Libertyville, and open Monday through Saturday, 7am to 7pm, with Sunday by appointment.
How We Handle Tree Jobs in Deerfield
- We don't top trees
- We'll tell you if a trim is enough before you pay for a removal
- Keep the firewood if you want it, cut and left where you say
- Open Monday through Saturday, 7am to 7pm, and Sunday by appointment
- The crew is insured for tree work
