Arboricultural work is at the heart of PLS Group UK’s expertise, offering a range of tree services across North Yorkshire and other areas in the UK.

Both the Managing director Jason and senior Manager Mark, have been climbing arborists for many years in the utility, commercial and residential sectors, keeping infrastructure and property clear from encroaching vegetation along with pruning and removing large trees in difficult to access residential gardens and commercial premises.

Maintaining the health of trees requires knowledge and experience along with a  qualified,, highly skilled work force. PLS Group UK’s arb teams meet all of these criteria. All our work is carried out to current industry standard, BS5837:2010 Tree work recommendations and our teams are qualified to national city and guilds NPTC standards.

Know the service you require?

Sectional Felling

Sectional Felling, as the name suggests, is a method of removing a tree by cutting small sections so they may fit into the small space on the ground avoiding damage to the surrounding environment. This can involve dropping branches and timber directly from the tree into specific drop zones on the ground or the use of rigging equipment to lower branches and timber. There are various methods that can be used to dismantle a tree that requires sectional felling, and these methods need to be adopted on a case by case basis as every tree and their environment is unique. 

When do you require Sectional Felling?

Where access is limited and there is an increased risk of striking surrounding property, infrastructure, powerlines etc. a climbing arborist will gain access using a rope and harness or Mobile Elevating Work Platform (MEWP) to safely dismantle the tree in small sections.

A site visit is essential to evaluate all these factors to ensure we can make a decision on the safest and most efficient way of removing the tree or trees in question.

Crown reduction

Crown reduction is where all or a portion of the crown of the tree is reduced to natural growing points. This must be undertaken so as to not remove too many branches and cause the tree to die back. 

When is crown reduction needed?

Crown reduction is more effective on small trees in small gardens and confined areas. Where a large tree is positioned in a small garden or directly next to the property, little effect will be gained from a crown reduction. In this case it would be better to look at crown lifting the tree (see below). Crown reduction is also effective at reducing the weight of the upper crown and in turn the wind loading effect.

Crown Lifting

Crown lifting is the removal of the lower branches without touching the upper crown. The act of crown lifting creates a higher tree canopy which naturally allows for more light to pass through as well as making an area more accessible, whether that be for people, vehicles or anything else that a tree with low branches could be obstructing. 

When is Crown Lifting needed?

If you’re finding that you have trees that are becoming an obstacle whilst conducting day-to-day tasks, it may be that those trees need crown lifting. We would also recommend crown lifting for more cosmetic reasons too, a tree might be shading a building too much or preventing desirable views to be seen. Crown lifting a large tree to gain more light is a more effective solution than crown reduction. 

Removal of dangerous trees

There are generally two types of dangerous tree. 

Storms are usually the main factor in causing trees to become an immediate danger. In particular this can include:

• Damage caused to the crown resulting in torn, hanging branches. Cracks developing in branch unions and forks resulting in an unstable join.
• Snapped roots caused by high winds causing the whole tree to become unstable and at risk from falling over. 
• Trees that have completely collapsed and fallen over. 

Damaged trees need to be dealt with immediately to avoid further danger. 

The other type of dangerous tree is where the structure of the tree has become compromised, potentially affected by pest/disease or decay fungus, and deemed unsafe to remain where it is, it’s quite possible the tree will need to be removed. There are a number of factors to look out for to establish whether a tree needs to be removed all together. For example, where the tree is in a suitable, low risk,  location you may wish to consider leaving the main stem of the tree as a habitat monolith rather than removing the whole tree itself. 

Carrying out work on damaged or dangerous trees requires an extra level of expertise and experience. We have that experience at PLS Group along with the equipment to put safety first.

A site visit is essential to evaluate all these factors to ensure we can make a decision on the safest and most efficient way of removing the tree or trees in question.