Overview
Brookwood Hills has many beautiful trees, some young and some old, planted between the sidewalks and the curbs. With many of the older trees having fallen over the past 10 years, the remaining trees in the public right-of-way have adapted to new patterns of sunlight. The result is that many trees, especially the older ones, have grown "suckers" closer down to the base of the trees. These suckers are essentially little branches or shoots that the trees are putting out to capture sunlight that previously did not hit the trunks. According to Chris Hastings, a professional arborist at ArborMedics, these suckers provide little food to these trees. What they do add, however, is a "weedy" and unkempt look that obscures the beautiful trunks of these trees. These lower branches also serve to make the area below the tree more "closed in" and sticky during the hot and humid summer months. If you have a minute, walk through the neighborhood and you'll notice a dramatic difference in the aesthetics of the trees which have these suckers and those which do not.
Additionally, many of the new young trees that are getting established in the right-of-way are in need of shaping. Their lower branches are hanging into the roads and the sidewalks and nursery established growth patterns don't necessarily fit their new home on our sidewalks. Light pruning can shape them up and make walking and driving in our neighborhood a much more pleasant experience, all the while contributing to the long term health of the trees. For many homeowners who have thought about pruning their trees, many branches are too high up in the tree to address safely by themselves. Moreover, for some trees, the small number of limbs seems like too little a job to justify paying a minimum fee (usually in excess of $250) to have a professional arborist come out and remove them. Finally, using a yard man or handyman may seem like a bad idea when it comes to large or small trees where homeowners are concerned that any work done on the tree should be done by a professional.
With this in mind, the BWHCC has put together a program with Chris Hastings of ArborMedics to help clean up the trees in Brookwood Hills between the street and the curbs. Many of you know Chris, and he has helped dozens of neighbors in Brookwood Hills care for and maintain their trees. His company recently worked on some of the trees around the park for BWHCC (see Parkdale photos in this flyer). Chris is focused on tree care only - not tree removal - so BWHCC is highly confident that Chris will treat our trees with the care they deserve.
Cost
As part of this program, Chris has agreed to waive his minimum fee of $300, reduce his hourly rate for a 2-man crew with a bucket truck and chipper to $175/hr (a 15% discount from his normal rate), charge individual homeowners at fractions of an hour for smaller jobs (e.g. a 15-minute job would cost approximately $45) and deal with any required permitting issues.
Contact
Take advantage of this great opportunity and have Chris come to your house and provide a free estimate. Please contact him at or on his cell at 770-715-1713. If you have any questions about this program, please email David Martin at (108 Wakefield) or Sara Jean Burke at (30 Wakefield). | 
