Los Angeles's expert arborists. Coast oaks to canyon eucalyptus, covered.

From coast live oak removals in Santa Monica canyons to shot hole borer treatment on a Silver Lake street tree, Los Angeles asks a lot of its trees, and its trees ask a lot of us. Expert arborists on call around the clock for removals, pruning, and storm response across Los Angeles County.

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Why Los Angeles

Why Los Angeles trees need a real arborist.

The Certified Arborist Tree Service sends expert arborists, not just crews with chainsaws, to every Los Angeles County job, because the city's mature oak canopy and its imported ornamentals fail in different ways and need different judgment.

Los Angeles runs a Mediterranean climate: mild wet winters, long dry summers, and soil that swings from sandy coastal fill to heavy adobe clay depending on which side of the basin you're standing on. A tree that thrives on a Westside sand lot can struggle on clay a few miles inland, and vice versa.

The regional threats compound that variability. Sudden oak death and gold-spotted oak borer target the native coast live oaks that anchor so many older neighborhoods, while polyphagous shot hole borer works through backyard maples and sycamores alike. We read the species and the site before we ever start a saw.

Schedule a Los Angeles site walk Call (844) 835-8733

Why Los Angeles trees fail

The risks we watch in Los Angeles right now.

Four problems account for most of the tree failures and canopy loss we get called out for across the Los Angeles basin.

Sudden Oak Death

This water mold has been quietly killing coast live oaks across California for two decades. Los Angeles oaks in shaded, irrigated yards are most exposed. We check bark for bleeding cankers on every oak inspection.

Gold-Spotted Oak Borer

This invasive beetle bores into oak bark and cuts off the tree's ability to move water, often with no outward sign until the canopy is already thinning. Firewood movement is the main way it spreads between neighborhoods.

Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer

A tiny beetle that farms fungus inside dozens of Los Angeles tree species, from box elder to sycamore. Once a tree is heavily infested, removal is usually the only option, so early detection matters more than almost anything else we do.

Winter Storm Uprooting

Los Angeles soil dries hard for most of the year, then a wet winter saturates it fast. Shallow rooted trees, especially eucalyptus, can go over in saturated ground even without much wind. We flag lean and root plate movement before the rains hit.

Service area

Our Los Angeles service area.

Serving Los Angeles and the surrounding communities.

Areas we cover

Click an area to learn more about our work there.

What people are saying

Rated 4.9 stars across 140+ reviews.

Real reviews from real customers, straight from our Google Business Profile. Here's what people say once the crew has packed up and the yard is clean.

★★★★★

March 11th, a brief but strong storm came through Goodlettsville and blew over two giant trees in my front yard; one which was being supported by a 3rd tree that was facing and threatening my house. It was an…

Julie Bangs●3 days ago

★★★★★

From the time I inquired w this company about removing a tree that was strongly impacted from the major strong 80 mph winds on March 3, 2023, they provided us w exceptional service in every way . They were…

Jeanne Mason●3 weeks ago

★★★★★

CATS crew was amazing across the board from Mike & Lisa & Joe to the crew that came to our house. The consultation was easy and informative and made me feel comfortable in choosing them. The price was less…

Guy Hunt●1 month ago

Read all 140+ reviews on Google

What we do

A geotagged inventory of every tree on the property: species, age, condition, and recommended work, refreshed annually.

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Trees we know

The Los Angeles species list, and what we watch for.

Local soil, local weather, local pests. Each species here fails in its own way, and we plan around all of them.

Coast Live Oak

The backbone of Los Angeles's native canopy and the species most exposed to sudden oak death and gold-spotted oak borer; we inspect these trees closely and rarely recommend removal if the crown still reads healthy.

Jacaranda

A Los Angeles street tree icon whose brittle wood and shallow roots mean storm damage and sidewalk lift are the recurring issues, not disease.

London Plane

Planted heavily along Los Angeles boulevards for shade; it tolerates the clay pockets well but needs structural pruning early to avoid included bark and weak unions later.

Chinese Elm

Common in older Los Angeles yards and tolerant of drought, but prone to deadwood buildup that we clear out before it becomes a liability over a driveway or roof.

Eucalyptus

Fast growing and common across Los Angeles hillsides, but shallow rooted and a known uprooting risk in saturated winter soil, plus a host for eucalyptus longhorned borer.

Crape Myrtle

A reliable smaller ornamental in Los Angeles yards; its main issue here is over pruning by unlicensed crews, which we correct with a proper structural approach.

Local expertise

Why an Expert Arborist Matters in Los Angeles

Los Angeles grows two cities' worth of trees: the native oak woodland the basin was built on, and the imported palette of jacaranda, eucalyptus, and London plane planted over the last century. They fail differently, and a crew that only knows one side of that equation is guessing on the other.

Every estimate is walked by an experienced arborist. Cuts follow ANSI A300, risk assessments are TRAQ qualified, and you get a written plan and a current Certificate of Insurance before any saw starts.

Across Los Angeles County

Every community in our coverage list, from the Westside beach cities to the canyons pushing into Ventura County, has its own page covering the species, soil, and storm exposure specific to that ground.

Los Angeles FAQ

Local questions, local answers.

Don't see your question? Call us. Every call is answered by a human arborist, day or night.

Do I need a permit to remove a tree in Los Angeles?

Often, yes, especially for protected native oaks or trees on a hillside lot. Requirements vary by exact address and zoning. We confirm what applies to your property and handle any permit or arborist report needed before work begins.

How fast can an arborist get to my property?

Most estimate visits happen within 24 hours across Los Angeles County, and storm emergencies get a crew on site the same day. We answer the phone around the clock.

What is stressing Los Angeles trees right now?

Sudden oak death and gold-spotted oak borer on the native oaks, polyphagous shot hole borer across a wide range of species, and saturated-soil uprooting whenever a wet winter follows a dry summer.

My eucalyptus is leaning after rain. Is that an emergency?

Treat it as one. Eucalyptus root systems are shallow, and lean after saturated soil is one of the clearest uprooting warning signs we see in Los Angeles. Call before the next storm, not after it falls.

What standards do your arborists follow?

Every job runs to ANSI A300 pruning standards, and every risk assessment is TRAQ qualified. An expert arborist walks every estimate.

Are you insured?

Yes. We carry full general liability and workers' compensation on every crew and can email a current Certificate of Insurance before work begins.

Take back your trees today