Contents (Click To Jump)
- 1 What Are the Most Common Tree Issues in Agoura Hills?
- 2 Does the City of Agoura Hills Provide Any Assistance in Tree Removal Problems?
- 3 Who Is Responsible For Fallen Tree Removal in Agoura Hills?
- 4 How Does the Soil Affect Trees in Agoura Hills?
- 5 Does Weather Affect Tree Health in Agoura Hills?
- 6 What If Dead Trees Are Near Power Lines in Agoura Hills?
- 7 How Much Does Tree Removal Usually Cost in Agoura Hills?
What Are the Most Common Tree Issues in Agoura Hills?
Agoura Hills is an unincorporated community of Los Angeles County in the Conejo Valley. This beautiful city contains a rich and vibrant biodiversity of tree life, including majestic redwoods, fragrant eucalyptus, sturdy live oak, and signature palms. Unfortunately, like humans and other animals, trees are susceptible to various pests and pathogens that threaten their health, beauty, and life. Many tree problems in the Agoura Hills area are caused by diseases and pests. These include:
- Bacterial leaf scorch: This systemic disease invades the xylem (water and nutrient conducting tissues) of susceptible trees. It’s most commonly seen in pin, red, shingle, bur, and white oaks but can also affect elm, oak, sycamore, mulberry, sweetgum, sugar maple, and red maple trees. Symptoms include branch mortality, leaf browning, and eventually, tree death.
- Hypoxylon canker. This is a white-rot fungal disease that appears as a dead lesion on limbs, branches, and trunks of affected trees. It primarily affects white oak, southern red oak, post oak, and water oak trees. The disease attacks weakened trees, grows in the sapwood, and manifests in dead branches, dead, sunken patches of bark, and a silvery fungus.
- Oak wilt: A fast-spreading and fatal disease caused by a fungus that affects the tree’s vascular system. Oak wilt is deadly for all the species in the red oak group, but the white oak group is less vulnerable. Oak wilt can be recognized by rapid wilting and loss of leaves beginning at the top of the tree.
- South American palm weevil: This is an invasive beetle that inflicts severe physical damage to the fronds, crowns, and hearts of palm trees, as well as weakening palms’ immune system to leave them susceptible to other fungal and wilt diseases. An untreated palm infested by palm weevils will ultimately die while serving as a nesting site to spread the beetle to other palms in the area.
- Bark beetles: They are tiny insects that take advantage of stressed and weakened trees. They tend to attack cedar, fir, pine, and spruce trees, but other bark beetle species go after arborvitae, cypress, elm, fruit, larch, and redwood trees. Because bark beetles generally go after weak trees, the trees don’t have much energy to fight off an infestation. Once there, bark beetles cut off the tree’s ability to transport water and nutrients. As a result, the trees’ needles or leaves will slowly change color. You may also see small holes, sawdust, or brick-colored tubes on the trees’ trunk or branches.
Does the City of Agoura Hills Provide Any Assistance in Tree Removal Problems?
Did you know that an oak forest almost entirely covered the Agoura Hills area at one time? However, the development of the city resulted in the removal of a significant number of these trees. In recent years, the city has worked hard to reverse this situation and increase the oak tree population in Agoura Hills.
To promote healthy oak trees, the city has an oak tree preservation ordinance that protects four native oak species, including valley oak, coast live oak, scrub oak, and coastal scrub oak. There’s a protected zone for any oak tree having a trunk diameter of two inches or greater, and you need to obtain an oak tree permit if you want to remove an oak tree from your property. You must also have a compelling reason to justify its removal. The city also has a landmark tree ordinance that protects larger-sized California sycamore, black walnut, and bay laurel trees, so you’ll need to apply for a permit to remove these trees as well.
Who Is Responsible For Fallen Tree Removal in Agoura Hills?
A fallen tree is not only a nuisance; it can cause a lot of damage to your property and cost you hundreds of dollars to have it removed. Knowing who is responsible for removing a fallen tree in Agoura Hills can save you a lot of money and frustration.
If you’re a homeowner?
Tree maintenance is considered a homeowner’s responsibility in Agoura Hills. You’re required to take care of your trees to prevent damage to other properties. So if you notice signs of instability, disease, or damage, you need to address them as soon as possible, or you’ll be held liable for any damage caused if they fell. Your homeowner’s insurance may cover the cost of tree removal.
If you’re a renter?
Renters aren’t responsible for tree removal in Agoura Hills unless stated explicitly in their lease. If you have tree removal responsibilities on your lease agreement, your renter’s insurance will likely cover the cost of tree removal.
If you’re a landlord?
If you’re a landlord and own the property you’re managing; you’re responsible for removing the fallen tree. However, you’re only hired to manage the property and collect the rent; you’re not responsible for the tree removal.
If you’re a neighbor?
If your neighbor’s previously healthy tree falls onto your property because of a storm or earthquake, you’re responsible for its removal. The state of California considers the damage caused by such a tree to be an Act of God, and your neighbor isn’t liable for the damage or the tree’s removal. But if the tree wasn’t adequately maintained and contained visible signs of disease or damage, your neighbor may be held liable for the damage and tree removal. In this case, knowing who the tree belongs to is crucial. Under California law, the tree is yours if the trunk is wholly on your property, but if the tree trunk straddles the property line, you and the neighbor own the tree and share the responsibility of its maintenance and removal.
How Does the Soil Affect Trees in Agoura Hills?
The ideal soil for tree health consists of a balance of sand, loam, clay, organic matter, minerals, water, and air, but rarely do we get the perfect combination. Soils in Agoura Hills are predominately clay. Due to its small particle size, clay becomes easily compacted, preventing drainage and air from reaching the roots. Our soils are also more alkaline, with a pH over 7.0, affecting tree health, especially in trees that aren’t well-suited for alkaline soils. Because alkaline soil is less soluble than acidic or neutral soil, nutrients are often limited.
Trees that grow well in alkaline soil include maple, Douglas fir, Austrian pine, bur oak, hackberry, green ash, and honeylocust. If you want to lower your soil’s pH, you can use sphagnum peat, elemental sulfur, aluminum sulfate, iron sulfate, acidifying nitrogen, and organic mulches. You can also improve your gray soil by adding organic mulch with slower composting materials such as bark, sawdust, or ground wood chips to your soil. Mulch slows down water run-off allowing your clay soil more time to absorb and store the water. A layer of mulch is also cooler than exposed soil, so it helps reduce temperatures.
Does Weather Affect Tree Health in Agoura Hills?
In Agoura Hills, the summers are warm, arid, and clear, and the winters are long, cool, wet, and partly cloudy. Agoura Hills is no stranger to drought; it is a recurring feature. We get 16 inches of rain on average per year, way below the national average of 38 inches.
While native California trees have adapted to our primarily dry weather, many trees cannot tolerate the heat and lack of water. Drought affects trees by slowing or arresting growth, causing injury or death, and increasing their susceptibility to wildfire, insect pests, and disease. During a drought, the amount of water available in the soil declines to a point where the tree’s roots cannot absorb moisture. Signs of tree stress caused by lack of water include yellowing or dead leaves, small leaves, leaf wilt, leaf scorch, bark cracks, and branch death.
We recommend planting native Californian tree species that can withstand our hot and dry weather conditions. These include white fir, Santa Lucia fir, California box elder, desert willow, big leaf maple, vine maple, water birch, and oak trees. You should also water your trees properly and appropriately, and don’t forget to mulch your trees. Mulch serves as an insulator that preserves moisture and coolness in the soil, which helps minimize the stress your tree feels during the hot summer months.
What If Dead Trees Are Near Power Lines in Agoura Hills?
Removing dead trees near power lines is a necessity to keep everyone safe. Because dead trees are unstable, they’re more likely to fall into power lines and take them down, causing a power outage in your area and increasing the risk of injury or death due to electric shock or electrocution. Dead trees can also ignite wildfires when they come in contact with power lines.
The state of California requires utility companies to maintain specific clearances (depending on voltage running through the line) between electric power lines and all vegetation. So if you notice a dead tree near power lines in Agoura Hills, you need to call the electric utility company right away to report. Their contracted arborist will come and assess the tree to determine that it’s indeed dead and recommend its removal. In many instances, the utility company pays for the tree removal.
How Much Does Tree Removal Usually Cost in Agoura Hills?
Although trees can add beauty and shade to your yard, there may be a time you want to remove them. Maybe it was blown over by a storm, or it’s growing too close to your house. Regardless of why you wish to remove a tree, you’re likely wondering how much the job will cost.
The average cost of tree removal in Agoura Hills is $669, but this price ranges from $300-$2,000 or more. If you need emergency tree removal services, you will have to pay much more. Typically, you can expect to spend 2 or 3 times the regular price of tree removal. When estimating your cost, wewill take into account several factors, including:
Location and Safety
A tree’s location plays an enormous role in your overall tree removal cost. If removing your tree means that our tree removal experts need to take extra care not to damage nearby structures like fences, sidewalks, roads, or your neighbor’s property, the cost of the job will be higher.
The hazards associated with your project will also be considered when our arborists provide you with an estimate. Some projects are more hazardous than others, especially if a tree is diseased or damaged or located near power lines. Performing these jobs safely and correctly is painstaking work that takes a lot of time, special equipment, and a bigger crew, costing you more.
Tree Size
One of the most significant aspects of tree removal cost is based on a tree’s size. For small trees up to 30 feet high, you can expect to spend $100 to $300 since they are the easiest and least expensive to remove. For trees between 30 and 60 feet, prices range from $300 to $700, and if you need to remove a large tree over 60 feet, it will cost you between $700 and $1,100. For the extra-large trees reaching up to 80 feet in height, you can expect to pay upward of $1,500 – very large trees are more expensive to remove because our specialist will have to add more people to the team and use high-powered machinery. Pricing depends on the height and diameter of the tree.
Extra Services
Most tree removal jobs require more than just getting rid of the tree. We offer stump grinding, wood splitting, and chipping as optional services when taking down a tree. However, these prices aren’t typically included in the tree removal estimate, and you’ll have to pay more for them. For example, stump grinding costs $80-$300 depending on the stump’s size, while chipping costs $70-$150.