Palm tree removal is different from felling an ordinary tree. A palm has no branches to rope from, a heavy crown at the top, sharp frond bases on many species, and a fibrous trunk that behaves differently under the saw. Most palms in gardens stand near pools, walls and paving, so they are usually taken down from the top in pieces. This page covers removal, palm tree trimming, the clean-up of fronds and seeds, and what happens to the stump. Send one request and teams near you will quote free, with no obligation.
How a palm comes down
With room to fall, a palm can be felled whole like any tree, but few garden palms have that room. More often a climber or a cherry picker removes the fronds and seed heads first, then the crown, then the trunk in short sections lowered on a rope. Palm trunks are heavy with water, so a short round weighs more than you expect. Tall palms over a roof or pool may need a cherry picker or a crane. The top of a palm is where the risk is, and good teams plan how each piece reaches the ground.
Palm tree trimming
Many palms do not need to come out at all, just a good trim. Palm tree trimming removes the dead, brown fronds that hang down the trunk, along with seed and flower stalks that drop fruit on paving and in pools. Leave the green fronds alone: cutting a palm back to a small tuft of green weakens it and it can take a long time to recover. Palms have a single growing point at the top. Damage it and the palm dies, so trimming is not a job for a ladder and a bread knife.
Fronds, seeds and the stump
Palm waste is bulky and fibrous. Fronds and trunk sections do not chip as easily as ordinary branches and can clog small chippers, so many teams cart them away instead. Ask whether the quote includes:
- removal of all fronds, seed heads and trunk sections
- clearing seeds from the pool, gutters and paving
- the stump cut flush, ground out or dug out
A palm stump does not resprout the way many gum stumps do, but its root ball is a dense mass of fibrous roots. Grinding works, and the stump rots fairly quickly once cut low. See stump grinding.
What changes the price
Height counts most: a 5 m palm and a 15 m palm are very different jobs. Then the species (some have sharp spines), how close it stands to the house, pool or wall, access for a cherry picker, and how much waste is taken away. Doing several palms together lowers the cost per palm.
What to include in your request
- The palm's height and species if known
- Photo showing the pool, walls or roof nearby
- Removal or trimming only
- Whether all fronds and trunk must go
- What to do with the stump
Palm Tree Removal for different clients
- Homeowners: a tall palm beside the pool removed in sections or trimmed of dead fronds
- Estates, complexes and body corporates: rows of palms along estate roads trimmed each year and dead palms removed
- Farms, smallholdings and plantations: old palms near homesteads and dams removed and the trunks carted away
- Businesses and commercial property: palms at hotels, lodges and shopping centres trimmed to keep seeds off the paving
- Schools, churches and municipalities: palms in parks and road islands trimmed or removed when they become a risk
- Developers and building sites: palms on a building site removed or lifted before construction starts
- Servitudes and fire breaks: palms growing into servitudes removed by authorised teams once lines are safe
- Tree fellers, landscapers and garden services: landscapers handing tall palm trimming to a team with a cherry picker
Frequently asked questions
How much does palm tree removal cost?
Can you remove a palm tree in Cape Town or Durban yourself?
How often should palms be trimmed?
How do I get a quote for palm tree removal?
Palm Tree Removal by province and city
- Johannesburg
- Pretoria
- Centurion
- Midrand
- Sandton
- Randburg
- Roodepoort
- Krugersdorp
- Randfontein
- Germiston
- Boksburg
- Benoni
- Kempton Park
- Alberton
- Vanderbijlpark
- Vereeniging
- Durban
- Pinetown
- Pietermaritzburg
- Richards Bay
- Newcastle
- Ladysmith
- Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth)
- East London
- Kariega (Uitenhage)
- Mthatha
- Cape Town
- Bellville
- Paarl
- Stellenbosch
- George
- Worcester
- eMalahleni (Witbank)
- Middelburg
- Secunda
- Mbombela (Nelspruit)
- Rustenburg
- Brits
- Klerksdorp
- Potchefstroom
- Mahikeng
- Polokwane
- Tzaneen
- Kimberley
- Upington
- Bloemfontein
- Welkom
- Sasolburg