For almost a decade, Austin has been preserving some of the oldest trees in our community and planting new trees to build and maintain an urban forest. Due to local ordinances, there is a list of trees protected by the city, and it's making a big difference!
If you plan on building a new landscape or remodeling your home, you might run into an issue with existing trees on the property that may be protected.
If you bought a home with an existing landscape, but you plan on doing a complete remodel for your dream yard, you are probably going to have to remove some trees, plants, and more. Before you do that, you’ll need to check if the tree(s) on your property is a protected tree.
Because of the protection ordinances, specific types of trees of a certain size cannot be removed unless they are also being replaced by a tree of the same size or bigger.
A protected tree is any tree with a DBH (diameter at breast height) of 19 inches or more within the Austin city limits. If you have a protected tree on your property that needs to be removed, you may need to apply for removal. Click here for more information.
It sounds simple enough. Take the tree out and put the new one in! The problem is most nurseries won't even have trees that size!
At Moon Valley Nurseries, we aren't just tree and nursery experts – we are tree growing experts and have been growing them for decades!
If you are not sure whether you are dealing with a protected tree in your property or what the next steps are, give us a call today and get your project completed. We love to help our community to preserve the local landscape and continue planting mature specimen-sized trees across Austin neighborhoods.