I have a large cedar that lives in the front yard. I needed some broken tree limbs removed and called three tree service contractors. The bids and recommendations were all over the place. The contractor I ended up hiring had sent out a certified arborist to evaluate the tree. The arborist recommended that I only remove the broken tree limbs. She said that the tree should not be trimmed back, especially at this time of the year. The other two companies offered to remove the broken limbs and trim back the tree.

Initially, I was hesitant to call an arborist. To me, “certified” means “more expensive.” However, in this case, the recommended course of action by the arborist ended up costing less than the full trim offered by the other contractors. Sometimes, following the advice of someone that you think will be the most expensive will actually cost you the least.