Tree Pruning Quotes With Clearance, Health, and Utility Notes

The request sounds simple:

Trim the oak away from the house and clean it up.

That sentence does not identify which oak, what away means, which branches should be removed, how much live crown may be affected, whether the customer expects the tree to become shorter, whether the service line is an electrical hazard, whether limbs may be free-dropped, or what clean it up includes.

One estimator imagines removing three dead limbs and creating six feet of roof clearance. The customer imagines lowering the entire crown by fifteen feet. The crew arrives with a chipper but no aerial-lift access. A branch crosses a neighboring parcel, a primary conductor runs behind the crown, and the customer expects the trunk wood stacked for firewood.

The price was never the only uncertainty. The work itself was undefined.

A useful tree pruning quote turns a visual, changing tree into a bounded work specification. It identifies the tree and owner; gives each cut a defensible objective; states the branch, size, location, and canopy limits; distinguishes pruning clearance from a promise about future growth; records access and drop-zone assumptions; separates ordinary arboricultural work from utility-controlled work; describes visible health or structural observations without pretending they are a full risk assessment; and says exactly what happens to brush, chips, and wood.

This guide applies to commercial tree-care quotes in the United States. Federal OSHA requirements, state plans, current consensus standards, utility rules, municipal tree codes, protected-tree ordinances, and contract law can all affect a particular job. It is operational drafting guidance, not a substitute for a qualified arborist's site prescription, the employer's safety program, the current standards, or legal advice.

Use the tree-service forms already in Documentorium. Record each tree ID, ownership or permission evidence, location, visible condition, nearby targets, access, utilities, and limits in the site assessment checklist. Put the objective, branch or canopy limits, measured clearance, method assumptions, cleanup, wood disposition, price, options, and exclusions in the tree-service quote. Move the accepted scope and responsibilities into the tree-service contract, then issue the tree-service work order with the annotated images and exact tree IDs. The tree-removal quote guide is a useful companion for equipment, access, rigging, drop-zone, and cleanup decisions.

Use the current practice and safety frameworks for different jobs

Two ANSI standards answer different questions.

The consolidated ANSI A300 Tree Care Standards (2023) provides the current professional-practice framework for tree care. Clause 5 covers pruning. A300 is a consensus practice standard, not a substitute for OSHA, state-plan, utility, permit, or employer requirements. It is not a universal instruction to make every tree look the same, and TCIA describes it as a framework rather than a standalone work specification. The arborist still has to write tree- and site-specific specifications.

The current ANSI Z133-2026, Safety and Health Requirements for Arboricultural Operations, addresses worker safety and health. ISA announced that the 2026 revision became available on May 27, 2026, replacing the 2017 edition. It covers general safety, electrical hazards, vehicles and mobile equipment, tools, climbing, tree-care operations, vegetation management, plant health care, and palm work.

Use them together without confusing them; neither consensus standard replaces a job-specific safety program or applicable law:

Do not paste ANSI A300 compliant onto an estimate and leave the actual pruning blank. A standard reference does not tell the crew whether to remove a four-inch dead branch above the garage, reduce one lateral by six feet, or raise the crown over a sidewalk. Likewise, a detailed pruning prescription is not a site safety plan.

Start with a tree inventory, not a line item called “trim trees”

Give every tree a stable field identity. On a one-tree residential job, that may be T1. On a commercial property, use a numbered plan, map pin, durable site tag, or annotated photograph.

Record:

• tree ID;
• common and botanical species when known with reasonable confidence;
• address and exact site location;
• trunk diameter or another consistent size measure when useful for estimating;
• approximate height and crown spread when relevant to access, rigging, or pricing;
• ownership status: customer, neighbor, shared/boundary, street, HOA, utility, or unresolved;
• nearby targets and obstacles;
• visible utilities above and below the work area;
• observed condition relevant to the proposed work;
• photographs from enough directions to recognize the tree and target branches;
• estimator and inspection limits.

Example inventory:

Do not guess ownership from the trunk's apparent position. A trunk on a boundary, a branch over the customer's land, or a tree in a public right-of-way can require a survey, neighbor consent, municipal authorization, or all three. The quote should state who is responsible for obtaining each approval and make mobilization conditional on receiving it.

If the owner is unresolved, quote the inspection or planning phase and mark production work not authorized. Do not let a signed price turn uncertainty into permission to cut someone else's tree.

Give every pruning operation an objective

Pruning removes living or dead tree tissue. Each cut should serve a stated objective, not a vague preference for a thinner or neater crown.

Common objectives include:

• remove identified dead, dying, broken, diseased, or weakly attached branches;
• establish or improve young-tree structure over several pruning cycles;
• create clearance from a named building, roof, sign, light, roadway, path, or other target;
• reduce the length or weight of selected branches at suitable laterals;
• restore a storm-damaged crown where retention is supportable;
• improve a defined line of sight while retaining enough crown for the tree;
• manage fruit, fronds, or other species-specific parts;
• support a documented plant-health strategy;
• implement a mitigation selected through a separate tree-risk assessment.

The International Society of Arboriculture's public pruning guidance emphasizes that no branch should be removed without a reason. It describes cleaning, raising, and reduction as distinct techniques and warns that removing foliage reduces the tree's energy-producing area. The same source explains that topping is indiscriminate cutting to stubs or undersized laterals and can create stress, decay, unacceptable risk, repeated maintenance, and loss of natural form.

Replace ambiguous instructions:

A percentage without a denominator is not a specification. Reduce 20% could mean remove one-fifth of foliage, shorten selected branches one-fifth, or lower the crown by one-fifth. Those are not interchangeable.

Translate the objective into branch-level limits

The crew needs to know what may be removed and when to stop.

Use one or more of these methods:

• mark target branches on photographs;
• identify crown sector by compass direction and target below;
• state a minimum deadwood diameter;
• state the diameter or length range of live branches selected for reduction;
• identify a branch by origin, attachment, and endpoint;
• state a maximum amount of live foliage or crown that may be removed in the visit;
• state the required retained branch or lateral relationship;
• list branches specifically excluded from the scope;
• require arborist approval before any cut above an agreed size;
• use a site walk and signed pruning sketch for unusual trees.

Example:

T1 roof-side reduction: Reduce the three laterals marked A, B, and C on Photo 2 to suitable branch unions, creating approximately 6 feet of horizontal branch clearance from the roof edge at completion. Do not top the crown, round it into a geometric outline, or remove unmarked scaffold limbs. Final cut selection is subject to sound branch unions and the arborist's live-crown limit. If the requested dimension cannot be achieved without an unacceptable cut or excessive live-foliage loss, stop and obtain written direction.

That last sentence matters. A drawing can demand a clearance the tree cannot reasonably tolerate. The quote should authorize the arborist to preserve the biological and structural limit, document the achievable result, and present alternatives rather than forcing damaging cuts to satisfy a number.

Specify pruning cuts without scripting every hand movement

The quote can set outcome and workmanship requirements while leaving field technique to qualified workers:

• make removal cuts outside the branch collar without a flush cut or avoidable stub;
• use reduction cuts to suitable laterals where reducing length;
• avoid indiscriminate heading or topping;
• protect retained bark, trunk, and branches from equipment and rigging damage;
• do not use climbing spikes on a tree being retained, unless a documented emergency or other specialized condition justifies their use;
• do not apply wound dressing unless a species-, pest-, or treatment-specific prescription requires it;
• sanitize tools when the specified disease-management protocol requires it;
• change the method if the tree or worksite assessment shows the planned anchor, rigging point, or access is unsuitable.

Do not convert a general consumer recommendation into an absolute rule for every species, disease, palm, storm response, or jurisdiction. The qualified arborist should select the prescription for the actual tree and current local pest conditions.

Define clearance as a measured completion condition

Clear the roof can mean removing contact only, creating a six-foot gap, or cutting every branch on one side of the tree. Put the target and measurement in the quote.

State whether the dimension is:

• an approximate target or required minimum;
• horizontal, vertical, radial, or along a marked plane;
• measured from the branch, foliage, or trunk;
• measured immediately after pruning;
• subject to retained-tree limits and final suitable cut location.

Never imply that completion clearance lasts forever. Branches move under load, wind, rain, snow, and fruit; foliage expands; sprouts develop; and the tree grows. A six-foot gap at completion is not six feet through the next growing season.

Useful language:

Clearance dimensions describe the condition observable at completion under normal unloaded conditions. They are not a warranty against future growth, branch movement, storm displacement, fruit or snow loading, or failure. Follow-up timing will depend on species, growth, site conditions, and the selected pruning objective.

For roads, sidewalks, fire access, signs, and public rights-of-way, verify the controlling local standard. Do not copy one city's clearance dimension into a national quote template. Seattle, for example, requires permits for specified street-tree pruning and asks for a pruning plan for major pruning. That is evidence for a local permit check, not a nationwide threshold.

Separate pruning from a tree-risk assessment

An estimate visit often reveals cracks, cavities, deadwood, mushrooms, included unions, root disturbance, dieback, or storm damage. Record what was actually visible. Do not turn a limited sales visit into a promise that the tree is healthy or safe.

Use three distinct records:

1. Condition observation: what the estimator could see from the stated location and method.
2. Pruning prescription: the authorized work and objective.
3. Tree-risk assessment: a separately scoped evaluation of tree parts, likelihood of failure, likelihood of impact, consequences, time frame, limitations, and mitigation under an appropriate method.

ISA's Tree Risk Assessment Qualification is specialized training in a standardized assessment process. ISA's 2025 Tree Risk Assessment BMP is intended to help arborists assess and evaluate risk and recommend measures that reach an acceptable level—not to promise that failure is impossible. ISA's annotated sample report also illustrates important limits: a ground-based visual assessment may not reveal roots below grade, internal wood, or upper-crown defects, trees change, and not every failure can be predicted.

Write observable notes

Prefer:

From the ground on the west side, estimator observed a cavity opening at the base, fungal fruiting structures near the root collar, and dieback in the upper east crown. The internal extent and cause were not assessed. Production pruning is pending review by an arborist qualified for the required assessment.

Avoid:

Tree is rotten and will fall.

Prefer:

No obvious defects were noted from the limited ground observation used to prepare this quote. This was not a tree-risk assessment and does not establish that the tree is free of hidden defects or failure potential.

Avoid:

Tree is completely safe after pruning.

The quote should trigger escalation when observations could change the work method or retention decision:

• suspected root-plate movement;
• cavity, conk, major crack, or extensive decay indicator;
• dead or broken top;
• weakly attached co-dominant stems;
• recent trenching, grade change, compaction, or root cutting;
• severe lean with changed soil or root conditions;
• lightning, collision, or storm damage;
• branch or trunk contact with electrical equipment;
• wildlife, bees, or protected habitat;
• climber anchor or rigging point uncertainty.

Make additional assessment a defined allowance or separate service. If new hazards appear after mobilization, the crew needs stop-work and change-order authority—not pressure to finish for the original fixed price.

Do not promise health outcomes pruning cannot deliver

Pruning can support structure, clearance, sanitation, or a plant-health plan. It cannot guarantee that a declining tree will recover, a disease will stop, a wound will close, a limb will never fail, or a pest will disappear.

Separate statements by confidence:

Be careful with thinning for tree health. ISA's public mature-tree guidance notes that routine thinning does not necessarily improve health and that heavy live-foliage removal can stress the tree. If light penetration, wind response, view, or structural development is the real objective, name it and specify which branches—not a blanket percentage throughout the crown.

Treat every overhead line as a scope and safety decision

The estimator should identify overhead conductors before pricing the production method. Do not label a line phone, cable, service, secondary, or insulated from appearance alone and then assume it is harmless.

Record:

• pole, transformer, conductor, service attachment, and guy-wire locations;
• tree parts already contacting or close to conductors;
• whether branches could move toward a conductor when cut or rigged;
• whether ropes, tools, lifts, cranes, or workers could enter the electrical boundary;
• utility owner and contact status;
• worker qualification needed;
• de-energization, isolation, grounding, covering, or utility pruning arranged by the system owner;
• work excluded until the utility confirms controls;
• who documents the call, response, and release.

OSHA's electric-power eTool states that electrically unqualified employees must maintain at least 10 feet from overhead power lines, with greater distance for voltages above 50 kV. That general-industry reference is not a universal field calculation: the controlling OSHA provisions can differ with the work classification, employee qualification, voltage, and protective measures. Confirm the applicable standard before pricing or performing work. Specialized line-clearance workers have training, voltage determination, minimum-approach-distance, equipment, job-briefing, first-aid, PPE, and weather requirements.

There is an important scope distinction in 29 CFR 1910.269. Its line-clearance provisions apply only to specified work done to clear space around electric generation, transmission, or distribution equipment on behalf of the organization that operates or controls those lines or operating procedures. The proximity of a tree to a line does not, by itself, make ordinary homeowner or commercial-property work covered by that section. OSHA's own note says that work not performed on behalf of that organization is outside the section's scope; other electrical safety rules still apply. A salesperson should not use the label line clearance to imply authority, qualification, or coverage that the contractor does not have.

For an ordinary tree-care quote, a safe decision tree is:

1. Identify a possible electrical exposure before choosing the method.
2. Treat lines as energized until the system owner establishes otherwise.
3. Determine the employer's applicable legal and Z133 requirements and the crew's actual qualification.
4. If unqualified employees, tree parts, tools, equipment, or rigging could breach the required boundary, exclude that work and contact the utility or an appropriately qualified line-clearance contractor.
5. Obtain and record the utility's response and any system controls.
6. Reassess the whole tree after utility work because branch loading, access, and the remaining pruning prescription may have changed.
7. Brief the crew on the confirmed configuration before work.

Do not promise the customer that a crew can just avoid the wire. Electricity can travel through conductive tools, equipment, ropes or wet material, and a severed branch can swing or fall unpredictably. The quote is not the place to improvise minimum approach distances.

Utility pruning may have a different objective

The electric utility may prune for regulatory clearance, fire protection, reliability, and future growth. It may use directional pruning that leaves an asymmetrical crown. A property owner's aesthetic objective does not supersede the utility's operating responsibility or electrical-safety rules.

Separate the scopes:

A utility may publish local clearance practices, but those numbers are not universal. PG&E, for example, describes California-specific distribution and high-fire-threat practices. Cite the customer's utility and jurisdiction instead of importing that utility's dimensions into another service area.

Plan the drop zone before pricing production

OSHA identifies falling branches and falls as serious tree-care hazards. Its tree-care bulletin describes a fatal incident in which a ground worker entered the trimming area and was struck by a limb. OSHA's current tree-care solutions material emphasizes traffic controls, drop zones, aerial-lift hazards, chippers, and power lines.

The quote does not replace the employer's job briefing, but it must capture site facts that affect feasibility and price.

Map:

• active drop and lowering zones;
• worker-only areas;
• customer and public exclusion areas;
• pedestrian and vehicle routes;
• doors, gates, playgrounds, patios, roofs, glass, solar panels, pools, sculptures, and fragile landscaping;
• parked vehicles and required relocation time;
• overhead and underground utilities;
• slope, soft ground, septic, irrigation, vaults, drains, and concealed structures;
• chipper, truck, crane, lift, and material-staging locations;
• emergency access;
• neighbor access and encroachment limits.

Then state the production assumption:

Branches over open turf may be controlled to the designated landing zone using the crew's approved method. Limbs over the slate patio and roof will be rigged and lowered in manageable sections. Free-dropping onto the patio, roof, fenced pool area, or neighboring property is not included. Customer will keep people, pets, vehicles, and movable property outside the marked work zone from crew arrival through release.

Do not guarantee no marks on lawn when heavy equipment must cross soft soil. Define protection and limits:

• plywood, mats, cribbing, or other specified ground protection;
• maximum equipment type or load assumed;
• dry or frozen-ground condition if required;
• sprinkler-head and invisible-fence marking responsibility;
• acceptable minor turf compression, or restoration included;
• stop-work threshold after rain;
• mobilization charge if access conditions change.

If a crane or lift is an alternate rather than the base method, price the alternate clearly. Include permit, street occupancy, operator, setup area, travel, minimum hours, cancellation, traffic control, and utility coordination as applicable.

Define access before a crew and chipper arrive

Photographs can hide the narrowest gate, septic field, steep driveway, locked alley, overhead cable, or HOA time restriction.

Record:

• clear gate width and height;
• path width, slope, surface, turns, and steps;
• load limits for driveway, vault, deck, or courtyard;
• distance from tree to truck and chipper;
• truck parking and curb use;
• work-hour and noise restrictions;
• elevator, roof, courtyard, or interior access;
• lock, tenant, security, and escort needs;
• pets and livestock;
• restoration responsibility;
• alternate manual handling if equipment access fails.

Example:

Price assumes unlocked 48-inch side-gate access, firm lawn suitable for compact tracked lift, and legal truck/chipper parking within 120 feet of the rear gate. Customer will identify irrigation, septic, low-voltage, and invisible-fence components before mobilization. If verified access is narrower, soil is saturated, or underground structures cannot support the equipment, work will pause for an alternate-method price.

That is more defensible than burying every condition in additional charges may apply.

Resolve permits, public trees, protected trees, and neighbors

Permit requirements vary sharply. They may depend on ownership, right-of-way status, species, trunk diameter, canopy percentage, pruning size, protected-tree classification, historic district, nesting season, wildfire zone, or development activity.

Build a permit section with named responsibilities:

Seattle's current public guidance demonstrates why a local check matters: major street-tree pruning can require a permit, pruning plan, site plan, and registered provider, with extra traffic documents for some street work. Those are Seattle rules, not a national template. The estimator should identify the actual authority for the job address.

Do not say permit included unless the quote identifies the permit, fee, applicant, review risk, and what happens if the authority changes the work. Do not schedule production on the assumption that approval will be automatic.

For a neighboring tree, distinguish legal authority from pruning biology. Rules for branches crossing a boundary vary by state and local law; a customer instruction does not automatically permit trespass, harmful cuts, utility exposure, violation of a tree ordinance, or destruction of the tree. Route unresolved boundary work to appropriate legal and arboricultural review.

Make cleanup a measurable scope

Haul all debris raises avoidable questions. Does it include old storm debris already on site? Logs? Sawdust? Roof and gutter cleaning? Raking flower beds? Removing chips from gravel?

Choose each output:

Example:

Chip and haul branches generated by the listed pruning. Cut trunk or limb wood over 8 inches in diameter into approximately 18- to 24-inch rounds and stack once at the east fence, no farther than 40 feet from the tree. Splitting, seasoning, stump work, removal of pre-existing debris, gutter cleaning, and landscape restoration are excluded. Rake or blow newly generated small debris from the lawn, hardscape, and work-access route.

If the crew may leave chips, state an approximate range and warn that a chip load contains mixed particle sizes and foliage. Do not describe fresh arborist chips as finished decorative mulch unless that material and use have been agreed with the customer.

Price the work from the specified method

Tree dimensions alone do not determine cost. The same branch can be a direct cut over open ground or a complex rigging operation over a glass roof beside electrical conductors.

Estimate:

• crew roles, qualifications, and hours;
• climb, lift, crane, or ground method;
• rigging complexity and number of controlled pieces;
• electrical coordination and hold time;
• traffic and pedestrian control;
• chipper and truck positioning;
• haul distance and disposal;
• permit and inspection administration;
• access protection and restoration;
• wood and chip handling;
• wildlife or plant-health controls;
• weather, soil, and seasonal limitations;
• follow-up inspection or second pruning cycle;
• uncertainty that requires an allowance rather than a guessed fixed price.

Useful pricing structure:

Avoid a nonrefundable deposit label without reviewing state law and the cancellation arrangement. Describe what a payment reserves, when it is earned, what third-party costs may be committed, and how cancellation or unsafe conditions are handled.

Use a change-order rule that stops unauthorized cutting

Tree pruning cannot always continue safely when the field condition differs from the estimate. A good clause explains both the trigger and the process.

Potential triggers:

• newly discovered electrical exposure;
• permit or utility restriction;
• decay, crack, cavity, weak attachment, dead top, or root instability affecting climb or rigging;
• active nest, protected wildlife, bees, or other biological hazard;
• access width, ground capacity, or parking differs materially;
• customer requests more clearance or extra branches;
• suitable reduction point cannot achieve the drawn dimension;
• weather makes the planned operation unsafe;
• neighboring access or permission is withdrawn;
• crane, lift, or traffic-control requirement changes.

Workflow:

1. Stop the affected operation and secure the site.
2. Photograph and describe the condition without overstating its diagnosis.
3. Identify whether unaffected work can proceed safely.
4. Provide a revised method, scope, price, and schedule.
5. Obtain authorization from the named decision-maker.
6. Update the crew copy and completion criteria.

Do not let a general field conditions may change price clause become permission to cut first and negotiate later.

Set weather and postponement rules around safety

Wind, lightning, ice, rain, heat, fire conditions, and saturated soil can change tree movement, electrical exposure, footing, equipment stability, traffic control, and property damage risk. For covered line-clearance work, OSHA §1910.269(r)(1)(vi) specifically restricts operations when adverse weather makes the work hazardous despite required practices.

The contractor—not the customer watching a weather app—must retain authority to stop unsafe work.

State:

• who decides whether work is safe;
• that safety postponement is not abandonment;
• whether third-party crane, traffic, or permit costs can become nonrecoverable;
• how the next date is selected;
• how emergency storm work differs from planned pruning;
• whether saturated-ground access requires a dry-out period;
• how an exposed, partially completed tree will be secured if conditions change.

Avoid promising a precise completion time for complex aerial work unless the method supports it. A production window and site-access requirement are usually more accurate.

Record objective completion evidence

Do not wait for a complaint to decide whether the crew met clearance.

The crew closeout should record:

• tree IDs completed;
• actual operations by tree;
• annotated before-and-after photographs;
• specified clearance measurements from the stated reference points;
• large or excluded branches left and the reason;
• live-crown limit or other stop condition reached;
• utility and permit conditions satisfied;
• condition observations discovered during work;
• change orders;
• wood, brush, and chip disposition;
• property damage or pre-existing condition record;
• customer walk-through or documented unavailable status;
• follow-up recommendation;
• arborist and crew identification.

Use the accepted tree-service work order as the field source, not a shortened dispatch note that says only trim oak. Keep the annotated photos available offline if connectivity at the site is uncertain. Use the employer's job hazard analysis for the actual crew, equipment, electrical, traffic, fall, and drop-zone controls.

Completion does not require cutting a biologically unsuitable branch merely to match a drawing. If the quote's stop rule is triggered, document the retained branch and the revised recommendation.

A reusable tree pruning quote structure

Use the following structure in the tree-service quote and carry the accepted terms into the contract and work order.

Parties, site, and authority

• customer and billing contact;
• property address and work location;
• tree owner and unresolved boundaries;
• person authorized to approve changes;
• property, street, neighbor, HOA, and utility permissions.

Tree inventory

• ID, species, location, size indicators;
• photographs and map;
• targets, access, utilities, visible condition;
• inspection method and limitations.

Objective and work specification

• objective for each tree;
• branches, size classes, locations, and photos;
• cut and retained-tree requirements;
• maximum live-crown or other stop limit;
• no topping or unlisted removal;
• items excluded.

Clearance criteria

• target object;
• dimension and direction;
• reference point;
• at-completion measurement;
• biological and suitable-cut limits;
• no future-growth or movement warranty.

Method, access, and drop zone

• climb/lift/crane/ground assumptions;
• rigged versus free-drop areas;
• exclusion and traffic zones;
• equipment route and ground protection;
• customer preparation.

Electrical and utility limits

• visible conductors and system owner;
• qualification boundary;
• utility contact responsibility;
• excluded utility-controlled work;
• hold point and reinspection.

Health, risk, and condition notes

• observations, not unsupported diagnoses;
• assessment included or excluded;
• referrals and stop-work triggers;
• no elimination-of-risk promise.

Cleanup and material disposition

• brush, chips, wood, sawdust, roof, beds, and street;
• hauling, stacking, lengths, distances, and exclusions;
• pest or quarantine treatment where applicable.

Price and payment

• itemized tree/scope price;
• alternates and allowances;
• permit and third-party charges;
• taxes;
• payment milestones;
• cancellation treatment.

Scheduling and change control

• production window;
• weather and soil conditions;
• access notice;
• change-order approval;
• emergency and partial-completion process.

Completion and follow-up

• evidence and acceptance method;
• condition notes found during work;
• reinspection or next pruning cycle;
• plant-health recommendations separately authorized.

Example scoped quote language

If the customer needs a broader risk opinion rather than a pruning scope, use the tree-risk assessment guide and keep that assignment separate. If stump work, new planting, staking, or ground disturbance is added, the utility-locate photo-log guide explains the ticket and evidence trail. Finish the pruning job with the completion sign-off, recording tree IDs, completed limits, cleanup, exceptions, and recommended follow-up without asking the customer to certify tree health or safety.

Tree T1 — mature red oak, rear yard northwest of residence

Objective: remove specified dead branches and create roof clearance while retaining natural crown form.

Scope: remove dead branches at least 2 inches in diameter throughout the accessible crown. Reduce branches A, B, and C shown on attached Photo 3 to suitable branch unions to target 6 feet of horizontal clearance from the roof edge at completion. Remove the broken hanger shown on Photo 4 by controlled rigging. Do not top, remove unmarked scaffold branches, or prune the utility-side crown. Live-foliage removal will not exceed the arborist-approved limit for this tree and visit. If that limit prevents the target dimension, work stops at the suitable cut and the remaining difference will be documented.

Method: climbing and rigging from points confirmed suitable during the pre-work assessment. Lower material over the roof and patio. Keep people, pets, vehicles, and movable property outside the marked drop zone.

Electrical limit: overhead service and supply conductors shown on Photo 5 are outside this contractor's authorized scope unless and until the utility and employer confirm the work method, electrical controls, and qualified personnel in writing. No worker, tool, rope, equipment, or cut branch may enter the applicable approach boundary.

Condition note: estimator observed a cavity opening at the southwest root collar from ground level. Internal extent was not assessed. Production is conditional on the qualified arborist determining that the tree and planned work method are suitable; a formal risk assessment is not included.

Cleanup: chip and haul branches produced by this scope. Cut wood over 8 inches in diameter into approximately 18- to 24-inch rounds and stack once at the west fence. Splitting, stump work, gutter cleaning, pre-existing debris removal, and turf restoration are excluded.

Follow-up: inspect after unusual storms and obtain the arborist's recommended reinspection or pruning interval. Clearance is measured at completion and is not guaranteed against growth, movement, loading, or failure.

The placeholders still need site-specific judgment. They are not permission to issue the same scope for every species and maturity class.

Tree pruning quote checklist

Tree and authority

• [ ] Every tree has an ID, location, and current photographs
• [ ] Species and size are recorded when relevant
• [ ] Customer, neighbor, shared, public, HOA, and utility ownership are distinguished
• [ ] Survey or boundary uncertainty is disclosed
• [ ] Tree, street, traffic, wildlife, and HOA permits are checked locally
• [ ] Applicant, fee, approval, and mobilization gate are assigned
• [ ] Decision-maker for changes is named

Objective and prescription

• [ ] Each pruning operation has a stated objective
• [ ] Target branches are identified by location, photo, diameter, or attachment
• [ ] Deadwood threshold is measurable
• [ ] Reduction and raising are not mislabeled as topping
• [ ] Suitable cut locations and retained natural form are required
• [ ] Maximum live-crown or stop limit is stated by the arborist
• [ ] Unlisted scaffold removal and whole-tree removal are excluded
• [ ] A300-2023 reference supplements rather than replaces the work specification

Clearance and condition

• [ ] Target, dimension, direction, and reference point are defined
• [ ] Measurement is expressly at completion
• [ ] Future growth, movement, weather loading, and failure are not warranted
• [ ] Visible observations are separated from diagnosis
• [ ] Inspection method and limitations are stated
• [ ] Formal tree-risk assessment is included or expressly excluded
• [ ] Hidden-defect and changed-condition stop rule is included
• [ ] Health, cure, and safety guarantees are removed

Electrical and safety constraints

• [ ] Every visible overhead conductor and attachment is recorded
• [ ] Lines are treated as energized unless the system owner establishes otherwise
• [ ] Employer identified applicable OSHA and current Z133-2026 requirements
• [ ] Crew qualification matches the actual electrical exposure
• [ ] Required minimum approach boundary is established, not guessed
• [ ] Utility contact, response, and controls are documented
• [ ] Utility-controlled scope is excluded or separately authorized
• [ ] Drop, rigging, traffic, equipment, and public zones are feasible
• [ ] Customer preparation does not transfer employer safety duties

Access, cleanup, and price

• [ ] Gate, route, slope, surface, load, parking, and work-hour assumptions are stated
• [ ] Ground protection and restoration are included or excluded
• [ ] Climb, lift, crane, rigging, haul, and traffic method support the price
• [ ] Brush, chips, logs, firewood, sawdust, roof, and pre-existing debris are addressed
• [ ] Permit, utility, crane, and third-party allowances are transparent
• [ ] Stump removal and unrelated tree work are separate
• [ ] Added branches require a written change order
• [ ] Weather, saturated ground, wildlife, and new hazards have postponement rules

Completion and follow-up

• [ ] Crew receives the full accepted specification and marked images
• [ ] Before-and-after photos and clearance measurements are required
• [ ] Retained branches and stop conditions are documented
• [ ] Material disposition is recorded
• [ ] Damage and pre-existing condition workflow is defined
• [ ] Customer walk-through or unavailable status is recorded
• [ ] Follow-up is species-, condition-, and objective-specific
• [ ] No internal dispatch shorthand can override the accepted scope

Sources

Sources checked September 10, 2026.

• Tree Care Industry Association — ANSI A300 Tree Care Standards
• Tree Care Industry Magazine — Introducing the Newly Designed ANSI A300 Tree Care Standards
• International Society of Arboriculture — ANSI Z133-2026 Is Now Available, published June 12, 2026; the standard became available May 27, 2026 and replaced the 2017 revision.
• International Society of Arboriculture — ANSI Z133-2026 Product and Scope, ©2026 edition and subject-area summary.
• International Society of Arboriculture — Pruning Trees
• International Society of Arboriculture — Pruning Mature Trees
• International Society of Arboriculture — Tree Risk Assessment Qualification
• International Society of Arboriculture — Best Management Practices: Tree Risk Assessment, Third Edition
• International Society of Arboriculture — Annotated Tree Risk Assessment Sample Report
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration — Tree Care Work: Falls and Falling Object Hazards
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration — Solutions for Tree Care Hazards
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration — Line-Clearance Tree Trimming Operations eTool
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration — 29 CFR 1910.333, especially paragraph (c)(3), for general approach distances and protective measures for unqualified persons and equipment near overhead lines.
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration — 29 CFR 1926.950, for construction-work applicability and the cross-reference sending covered line-clearance tree trimming to 29 CFR 1910.269.
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration — 29 CFR 1910.269
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration — Tree Care Industry Standards
• Seattle Department of Transportation — Street Tree Permits
• PG&E — Trees and Powerlines

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This article is general U.S. information, not arboricultural, legal, licensing, engineering, insurance, tax, electrical, emergency-response, or workplace-safety advice. Verify the assignment, qualifications, ownership, access, utilities, permits, assessment method, worker protections, and local requirements with the responsible authorities and qualified professionals before acting.