Our knowledge of tree function and structure, combined with extensive training in climbing, rigging, and the use of aerial lifts makes Gallagher Tree Service LLC your best choice for the care of your valuable trees, whether young or old. Improper pruning can substantially damage your tree, may reduce its lifespan, or render it prematurely unsafe. Our certified arborists have taken an oath not to perform arborcultural work that is injurious to a tree.

We prune all sizes and species of trees and shrubs. Whenever possible, we perform maintenance pruning when trees are in winter dormancy. The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) groups all pruning types into the following categories:

• Cleaning: Selective pruning to remove one or more of the following parts: dead, diseased, and/or broken branches.
• Espalier: A combination of pruning, supporting, and training branches to orient a plant in one plane.
• Pollarding: The maintenance of a tree by making internodal cuts to reduce the size of a young tree, followed by the annual removal of shoot growth at its point of origin.
• Raising: Selective pruning to provide vertical clearance.
• Reduction: Selective pruning to decrease height and/or spread.
• Restoration: Selective pruning to improve the structure, form, and appearance of trees that have been severely damaged.
• Thinning: Selective pruning to reduce density of live branches.
• Topping: The reduction of a tree’s size using heading cuts that shorten limbs or branches back to a predetermined crown limit. Topping is not an acceptable pruning practice. [Gallagher Tree Service LLC will not top your tree. If height or view obstruction is a concern, we use other techniques that will not set your tree up for failure.]
• Vista pruning: Selective pruning to allow a specific view.
  We do not prune just to “put a lot of brush on the ground”. We prune to meet specific goals and objectives. We remove limbs and/or branches for reasons based on tree function and structure and its influence on the landscape.

Our intention is to enhance your trees or shrubs in the landscape, so that you are struck by their health and beauty, not by the fact that they have recently been pruned. The only trace we leave behind is a healthy tree in the landscape of a satisfied client.

All pruning is performed in accordance with ANSI A300 and ANSI Z133.1 standards.      

Our certified arborists take pride in the combination of skill and experience they have with hazardous tree removal. Expert training enables us to efficiently assess and plan the best approach for safe removal of hazardous trees without causing damage to your property. Removals are performed using properly maintained equipment appropriate for the job, and all our practices are in accordance with ANSI standards.

Our team believes that a thorough clean-up is necessary in order to consider a removal complete. This usually involves moving the generated wood. Depending on the integrity of the wood and your preference, we can leave it, split it, stack it, or remove it. We can even arrange to have it milled by a portable band saw mill, if you so desire.

Recognizing that a tree poses a hazard and must be removed can be stressful for many reasons. In the Upper Valley Lake Sunapee Region, Gallagher Tree Service LLC can put your mind at ease.

Stump grinding is a cost effective way to make stumps disappear without the use of heavy equipment that often causes damage to adjacent trees and landscape. We have equipment capable of accessing stumps in many types of difficult locations throughout the Upper Valley Lake Sunapee Region of New Hampshire and Vermont.

In most cases, the stumps are ground to just below ground level. After grinding, the surrounding soil and the wood fiber that is produced during the grinding is raked back into the hole and left on site. Or if you prefer, we can also remove the generated debris and replace it with soil, turf, or even a new tree planting or shrub.

Gallagher Tree Service LLC can erase the unsightly remains of a tree long gone, allowing you to put that area of your property to use again.

We have a passion for planting trees and shrubs, both large and small. Tree planting is very rewarding and a valuable addition to your landscape, but if improperly done it can be a very costly endeavor. Gallagher Tree Service LLC has the expertise and desire to make your investment flourish.

Selecting the proper tree for a specific site requires the education and experience of our certified arborists. Careful site analysis along with our knowledge of the requirements and habits of tree species guides your choices. Our team will then select and procure an appropriate specimen with an expert eye toward proper trunk taper, healthy root development, and desirable branch orientation and overall form.

Once your tree planting is established, we highly recommend our program of tree fertilizing and pruning to maintain your growing investment in your property.

Most trees and shrubs attract or harbor what are generally considered pests to a cultivated landscape. These can be easily detected animals or insects, or microscopic invaders such as destructive fungi or disease. When left to nature, a balance is often struck in a shared environment, but in the created landscape imbalances occur that require intervention.

Through our consulting service, Gallagher Tree Service LLC can tailor a pest management program for your specific needs. We have cost effective and environmentally friendly tools that will successfully manage many of the most common pests and diseases. Our staff’s education in entomology, tree pathology, and soil science, in addition to our field expertise, allows us to examine and treat your landscape in a comprehensive and environmentally friendly way.

Since the best preventive practice is to create landscapes that are vigorous, drought tolerant, resistant to disease, and free of pests, we recommend that you take advantage of our high quality tree pruning and fertilization services.

Gallagher Tree Service LLC provides consulting services to every corner of the Upper Valley Lake Sunapee Region of New Hampshire and Vermont. Our certified arborists are eager to share their expertise with you as your plan and maintain your landscape. Concerns often fall into one of these four categories.

Construction consultation: It can take up to five years for the full extent of damage due to construction to become evident in the landscape. For this reason, we highly recommend that you consult with us before breaking ground on your next project. When planning a project of any size that will disturb or alter the landscape, it is wise practice to have the input of a professional arborist.

Our services to building projects include taking inventory of the trees and shrubs on your site and determining which are potential candidates for preservation, helping define areas of high use for staging materials and equipment, and establishing tree protection zones to ensure the safety and health of your trees in their new landscape.

Hazardous tree evaluation: The development of a hazardous tree situation is greatly influenced by factors such as soil conditions, water table, and exposure. Most failures occur during storm events with unusual winds, saturated soils, or snow and ice loads. Advance evaluation by our certified arborists, educated to assess tree function and structure, soils, topography, and local climate can help you preserve your landscape and avoid a hazardous tree removal in the future.

Landscape consultation: Our landscape consultation can provide valuable information for anyone in the planning stages of a landscape project. Our site analysis includes soil sampling, planting design, plant selection, irrigation layout, night lighting plans, and recommendations for care after your landscape project is completed.

Plant health consultation: If you suspect you may have an invading pest or disease in your landscape, our knowledgeable staff can identify the problem and provide an effective strategy for corrective action.

Our clients have seen impressive results with our feeding programs on both new tree plantings and established older specimens. The feeding program we recommend for your trees is developed after carefully reviewing your site analysis, soil tests, your tree species, and the age and condition of your specimens. Our preferred tree feeding method is the liquid root zone injection which delivers nutrients ready for immediate uptake by the tree. When situations warrant it, we also have other methods available.

In the Upper Valley Lake Sunapee Region of New Hampshire and Vermont, tree feeding is best administered in the fall as the tree prepares for its dormant season. Specific conditions may call for feeding at other times of the year or for successive feedings.

Tree feeding programs are closely linked to pest management. Both programs support optimal cultural conditions and improve tree vigor while reducing pest populations. Our certified arborists delight in the science of designing an effective tree feeding program for each tree whose care is entrusted to us.

Trees grow to maximize their access to sunlight. Without structural pruning early in life, this growth pattern can sometimes create structural flaws such as co-dominant stems and included bark. When these problems are detected early enough, pruning may solve the issue. When these trees are not pruned early and the defect becomes significant, hazard cabling and pruning may be sufficient to reduce the risk. In some cases, however, some trees are not candidates for cabling and tree removal is the only way to minimize the risk they pose.

In the last ten years, there has been a shift in cabling practices in this country. This can be attributed to the research in tree failure performed by the late Dr. Alex Shigo and Dr. Claus Mathett. Their research, as well as that of many others, has shown that the static loading caused by a rapid tensioning of steel cables in tree canopies can lead to structural failure.

In some cases, steel (static) cables are the best choice for the situation, but the majority of the time dynamic synthetic cables, properly installed with shock absorbers, are the better choice. Our certified arborists will determine the best cabling system and design appropriate for your situation.

The Upper Valley Lake Sunapee Region of New Hampshire and Vermont has its share of severe weather conditions. Lightning can quickly and unexpectedly destroy the results of years of hard work and patient nurturing that lightning protection could have prevented. Mature trees near buildings and tall trees of high value in the landscape may be candidates for lightning protection. Let our certified arborists help you determine whether lightning protection is a wise precaution for your property.

We truly enjoy designing trails for our clients so that they, too, can enjoy the beauty and majesty of trees and the wonders of the outdoors. Our professional training and eye for trail layout, coupled with our maneuverable equipment can transform your wooded areas into a useful natural retreat.