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Tree Removal in Smith Flat

Yes, we help folks in Smith Flat. Call (530) 316-5144. We'll find someone nearby to come take a look. It's a short hop from Placerville, so finding someone is usually not hard.

A small place with a long past

Drive 2.5 miles east out of Placerville and you're in Smith Flat. Camino is another 4.5 miles on. The elevation is about 2,224 feet, a bit above downtown Placerville. It's unincorporated.

The name honors Jeb Smith, a rancher who settled early. The Smith's Flat post office opened in 1876. It became Smithflat in 1895, and you'll still see it spelled both ways.

Back in the wagon days, the Johnson Pass route over the Sierra counted 93 stopping places. Smith Flat made the list. Its 1850s Smith Flat House is the one station left standing, and it serves meals now.

Out of the city, under county rules

Smith Flat is outside Placerville city limits. So the county's rules are the ones to follow.

• Fire clearing: county Chapter 8.09, meaning a 100-foot buffer at minimum.
• Oaks: the county oak chapter, which covers private land at or below 4,000 feet. Smith Flat is well under that.
• Burning: a burn permit and a permissive burn day, outside declared fire season.

A neighbor's lot can matter here. Under Chapter 8.09, if brush on the lot next door is within 100 feet of your house, the neighbor may have to clear their side. That's worth knowing on the small, close lots along the old highway.

Photo spot: a narrow foothill road east of Placerville lined with pines and a few oaks, simple drawing

The trees that cause trouble

Lots out here usually have some oaks, some pines and a fair bit of brush. Here's what tends to bring a call:

• A tall pine leaning toward the house after a wet winter.
• A pine that went from green to rusty in one summer.
• An oak with a split trunk or a big dead limb over the driveway.
• Brush and young trees grown up thick between the house and the road.
• A tree tangled with the line running to the house.

For lines, don't touch anything. Let the utility and the pro sort out who handles what.

Beetles in the pines

If you've got pines, learn the signs of bark beetles. UC IPM lists yellowing needles that drop, plus sap blobs on the trunk with sawdust-like dust mixed in.

Spacing helps the keepers. Crowded pines are easier targets for beetles, according to UC IPM. Thin a tight group and the trees left behind grow stronger. Bonus: it's fire clearing too.

What it might cost

Every job is priced on site, but national guides give you a starting point. LawnStarter says $10 to $14 per foot of tree height is common, with most jobs between $385 and $1,070.

A 60-foot pine at $10 to $14 a foot would land around $600 to $840. Lean, slope and what's underneath move it from there.

Get ready for the visit

• Note which trees bother you and why.
• Check for any oaks in the mix.
• Clear the cars from the driveway.
• Point out buried lines, septic and irrigation.
• Decide if you want the stump ground and the wood hauled.

Nearby

Keep heading east for tree removal in Camino. Turn around for tree removal in Placerville, or swing southwest to tree removal in Diamond Springs. Pines turning brown? Read dead tree removal. The whole roster is on the towns page.