Tree pruning

[NewbieOwner]

Hey folks,

Found a NICE niche to try out... Seems there isn't a arborist in this town! I did some freebie pruning work today (brown-nosing) While I was doing it, I had 14 people stop and ask if I could do an estimate...

Whats the 'normal' rate for pruning work? (I've never done major pruning work, just the odd clip here and there, always done for free) How do you estimate how long it will take? I know experience will help, but is there a basic guideline?

Time to dig out my arborists books again I guess! Need to brush up on my tree identification as well as diseases etc.

Andrew

[corban]

There's a lot of money to be made in tree work. I typically charge like this:

Limb cut from ground with no extensions: $5
Limb SMALLER than wrist cut with extension (pole saw): $5
Limb LARGER than wrist cut with extension: $10
If I have to climb the tree: $40 + $10 a cut

Removal is seperate fee. These prices are just to get the limbs on the ground. I usually charge three times the estimated cost at dump. For my area a full 6 1/2 X 16 foot trailer full of brush will cost $30 at the dump. So for a full load I charge $90 and explain it as 1/3 dump fee, 1/3 labor cost, 1/3 equipment cost.

However, if I'm just going to snag a few annoying limbs the thickness of a thumb out of my way, I probably won't charge more than $10 total. It depends on the person/reason.

[1MajorTom]

Post this over at:
www.ArboristSite.com