Tree Service in Saint Paul, MN

Tree Service in Saint Paul starts with one question we ask on every visit: whose tree is it? On most residential blocks the tree between the sidewalk and the curb belongs to the city, and the maple or oak behind the sidewalk belongs to you. That line decides who pays, who needs a permit and who is allowed to touch it. We sort that out on site before we write a single line of the estimate, so you are never billed for work the city should be doing, or surprised by a rule halfway through the job.

The boulevard rule, in plain terms

Saint Paul Forestry requires an approved permit for any work on a public boulevard tree: planting, trimming, treating, removing or grinding the stump. The application itself is free, but the work is done at the applicant's expense, and nothing can start until Forestry staff sign the permit. If your project needs a boulevard tree pruned for clearance over a new garage or driveway, we can explain the process and what Forestry will want to see. Damage a public tree without a permit and the city can ask for restitution, including its replacement value. For stump work or planting on the boulevard, Gopher State One Call has to mark utilities first.

After the ash

Minnesota's first known emerald ash borer infestation was found in Saint Paul's South Saint Anthony Park neighborhood in May 2009. Since then the city has taken down more than 31,000 public ash trees from boulevards and parks, and its block-by-block structured removal program wrapped up in 2024. What remains are thousands of ash trees on private lots. Many are now standing dead, and dead ash becomes brittle quickly. That matters for removal: a tree that could have been climbed and taken down in sections two summers ago may now need a lift or crane because it is no longer safe to tie into. If you have an ash you have been meaning to deal with, it will not get cheaper or safer.

Bluffs, old lots and tight access

Saint Paul sits where the Minnesota River meets the Mississippi, and the river bluffs shape a lot of our work. Homes along the bluff edges in neighborhoods like Highland Park, Dayton's Bluff and the West Side often have trees growing on slopes where a falling limb can roll well past where it lands. In the older core neighborhoods, narrow side yards, detached garages on alleys and overhead service lines mean most removals are done in pieces, lowered on ropes, rather than dropped whole. We plan the rigging and the landing zone before the first cut.

Storms that reshaped blocks

In the early hours of June 21, 2013, a line of severe storms crossed the metro and a trained spotter southwest of downtown reported many trees and branches down in yards and streets. MPR News later reported Saint Paul probably lost more than 1,000 trees in that event, including about 500 boulevard trees, with city crews working overtime for close to a month. We use storms like that as a reminder when we prune: thinning a heavy crown and removing weak, cracked unions before summer storm season is cheaper than a tree through the roof.

What happens to the wood

Ramsey County runs free yard waste sites for residents, and several of them take branches and trees, but they do not accept stumps with roots, and commercial tree crews are not allowed to use them. When we do a job, hauling and chipping are written into the estimate line by line, so you know whether the wood leaves with us, stays as firewood rounds, or is chipped for your garden beds.

Getting an estimate

Call (651) 374-8562 or send the form with a few photos. We walk the yard with you, point out which trees are yours and which belong to the city, and leave a written estimate. Get a free estimate