The biggest private trees on the North Shore
Pymble, West Pymble and the streets running east toward Bobbin Head Road sit on some of the deepest shale soil on the ridge, and the trees show it. Forty-metre blackbutt, Sydney blue gum and turpentine stand in back gardens on blocks of a thousand square metres and more, many of them older than the houses.
They are also, very often, remnants of Blue Gum High Forest — a critically endangered ecological community — and they sit inside Ku-ring-gai Council, which has the toughest tree controls in the region. The combination means that on most large Pymble eucalypts the answer is management, not removal, and any crew that tells you otherwise is selling you a problem.
What the work usually is
For the big remnant trees: deadwood removal, taking out hung-up material after storms, targeted reduction of limbs that have over-extended toward a roof or a pool, and clearance from the house and gutters. That is the work that actually reduces risk, and it is generally within what the council allows.
Genuine removals at Pymble are mostly planted exotics and structural failures. Camphor laurel, privet, liquidambar and cocos palm come out with much less argument. So do trees with real defects — decay pockets, fungal brackets at the butt, a co-dominant union that has begun to split — where an arborist's report supports the case.
The eastern fall
East of the Pacific Highway the country drops away toward the Cowan Creek catchment and Sheldon Forest. The soil thins to sandstone, the species change to Sydney peppermint, angophora and red bloodwood, and the blocks get steep. Those become climbing jobs with hand-carried timber, and stump grinding frequently hits rock shelf early.
Blocks adjoining Sheldon Forest and the other bushland reserves get extra scrutiny, and encroachment into reserve land — dumping green waste over the back fence included — is taken seriously by the council.
What to expect from a quote
A mature blackbutt at Pymble produces a genuinely large volume of timber, and moving it is most of the day. Expect the quote to reflect the number of tipper loads, the carry distance to the street, and whether an elevated work platform can get down the driveway. Where it can, the price improves considerably.
Ring (02) 9090 4915 with the street, the rough height and what is under the tree. Nearby: Gordon, St Ives and Hornsby. The cost guide sets out the drivers in full.
Frequently asked questions
What is Sheldon Forest?
It is a bushland reserve on the eastern side of Pymble running down toward the Cowan Creek catchment, holding remnants of the tall shale-soil forest that once covered this ridge along with sandstone woodland on the lower slopes. It is council-managed land — nobody works in it privately — and blocks adjoining it are assessed more carefully.
My neighbour's gum drops branches into my yard. What can I do?
You may cut growth that crosses the boundary back to the boundary line at your own cost, subject to any council tree permit, and the cuttings belong to your neighbour. For a genuine hazard, the NSW Land and Environment Court can hear applications about trees causing damage or risk of injury, but the sensible first step is a conversation and a written record of what you raised.
Why does Pymble produce such big trees?
Deep Wianamatta shale soil holding more moisture and nutrient than the sandstone either side of the ridge, plus a rainfall band that favours tall wet sclerophyll forest. Blackbutt, Sydney blue gum and turpentine on that soil routinely reach thirty-five to forty-five metres, and plenty of the ones in back gardens have been growing since before the block was subdivided.