Tree Service in Altadena, CA
After the January 2025 Eaton Fire, many Altadena trees are still alive. Our tree service in Altadena helps you decide which ones can be saved on foothill lots, then trims what stays and removes what cannot.
Tree care in Altadena
A foothill town, rebuilding
Altadena is not a city: it is unincorporated Los Angeles County, so county agencies set its rules and look after its 9,500 parkway trees. The Eaton Fire began in Eaton Canyon on the evening of January 7, 2025. It burned 14,021 acres, destroyed 9,418 structures and took 19 lives. Yet many trees lived. Coast live oaks, sycamores and Canary Island pines can take heavy scorch and leaf out again. All 153 deodar cedars on Christmas Tree Lane, some 130 feet tall, came through. The lane has been lit for the holidays since 1920.
After a fire, the first question about a tree is not how to remove it — it is whether it is still alive.
The list
After the Eaton Fire, Altadena trees need checks, pruning or removal
Supreme Tree Experts checks, prunes and removes burned trees in Altadena, where many oaks survived the 2025 Eaton Fire. If you are unsure which scorched trees can be saved, ask Supreme Tree Experts.
Tree Removal
Before a burned tree comes down, we lift a little bark to look for moist, living tissue. Many trees that looked dead after the Eaton Fire are still alive. Waiting a couple of months for new growth often saves an old one.
Tree Trimming & Pruning
We prune scorched trees by taking out dead wood and leaving live limbs to leaf out. Coast live oak, sycamore, Canary Island pine, carob and redwood can lose many leaves to scorch and still recover. Green shoots earn a tree a closer look.
Stump Grinding & Stump Removal
We grind stumps once your lot is ready for new planting after the rebuild. Burned wood and rebuild work on the lot shape much of the cost here. The grinder takes the stump below grade and leaves a clean bed.
Palm Tree Trimming & Skinning
Winds off the mountains tear loose fronds from tall palms, so we cut dead fronds and seed stalks first. Skinning removes the old frond bases, where dry litter collects on the trunk. Our lift truck for palms reaches the crown without spikes.
Emergency Tree Service
Our crews respond 24/7 when a limb breaks over a roof or a tree blocks your drive. Strong winds off the mountains broke limbs across town in 2011 and again during the 2025 fire. We clear the hazard first.
Tree Maintenance
We check the trees inside your lot line for decay, dead wood and slow recovery after fire stress. LA County Public Works looks after about 9,500 parkway trees here, since Altadena has no city government. Those street trees go to the county.
Tree Height Reduction
We lower tall conifers near homes with small cuts back to side limbs, never topping them. The deodars on Christmas Tree Lane stand as tall as 130 feet, and all 153 came through the fire. Tall trees here often deserve care, not removal.
Estate Tree Care
Large foothill lots often hold oaks, pines and cedars together, and we plan their care as one. In unincorporated areas, the county's oak permit rules can cover work that affects oaks during development. Check with the county before an oak comes out.
Tree Shaping & Shrub Shearing
We shear hedges and thin dense shrubs, keeping growth back from walls and eaves. Homes here sit high on the mountain slope, near 1,358 feet. Keeping dry growth off the house is part of every visit.
Landscaping
We start new planting on rebuilt lots with the trees that are still standing. A local group, Altadena Green, also works to save trees that lived through the fire. We plan beds and new trees around those survivors.
Hardscape
Our crews route new paths, patios and low walls around surviving roots as homes are rebuilt. The Eaton Fire destroyed 9,418 structures, so much of town is building again. Sparing roots now helps the trees that made it.
How we work in Altadena, before anything is cut
- 01.
Is it alive?
An arborist lifts a little burned bark to look for moist, living tissue and checks the trunk and roots.
- Scorch vs. dead wood
- Lean and roots checked
- 02.
Save or remove
You hear which trees can stay, which need pruning and which are a danger. County oak rules are checked too.
- Hazards first
- Survivors kept
- 03.
Careful work
The crew takes out dead wood and hazards, chips the brush and leaves healthy limbs alone.
- Living limbs kept
- Brush chipped and hauled
A second look before removal: how we care for Altadena's burned trees
Tree work goes wrong when it is rushed or under-equipped. We run our own 75-foot boom trucks, lift trucks, chippers and stump grinders, and every crew works under an ISA Certified Arborist — so the job gets done right the first time.
We hold California license #1002853 for both landscaping and tree and palm work, we are bonded, we carry general liability and every employee is on workers’ compensation.
ISA Certified Arborist
An arborist visits free and checks burned or stressed trees for signs of life before anyone talks about removal.
Licensed, Bonded & Insured
Our California license, #1002853, covers both tree service (C-61/D-49) and landscaping (C-27). We are bonded, and every crew member is insured.
Southern California Since 1985
Our family has done this work since 1985. In that time we have learned that a scorched tree often deserves a second look.
Our Own Equipment
Our own 75-foot boom trucks reach tall cedars and pines from the street, and our own grinders handle stumps when you are ready.
Reviews to read before you book in Altadena
Every word below was written by a customer on Google, not by us. Long reviews are shortened to fit the card — never reworded. None of them was left in Altadena: they come from customers across Southern California. Read them for how a crew behaves on a job, then decide whether that is who you want in Altadena.
“Great pricing & service. Highly competent with tricky jobs. We have used them for more than 10 years.”
Melanie Butler
Local Guide
“We got bids from five contractors. After I talked to them all and checked out their licenses and work, we decided to go with Supreme. … The job took a day and a half, and when they were done, they left the place immaculate.”
Hank Shaeffer
“Great tree trimmers! I’ve used Supreme Tree Experts twice to trim the palm trees in my yard. … The guys who come out are quick thorough, and clean. And very careful not to damage property.”
Emilie Pacheco
“These guys have worked on my property 3 times now. They are always on time and do a fantastic job. I highly recommend them!”
Ray Thompson
“After soliciting several quotes on some difficult yard work, we chose Supreme because of their licensed Arborist Temis … The crew was extremely hard working and we couldn’t believe their continuous work ethic on one of the hottest days of the year.”
Gary Brown
Local Guide
Before you book in Altadena
6 questions worth having answered before you book tree work in Altadena. If yours is not here, call 877-787-7363 and ask.
Look under the bark. An arborist quoted by LAist suggests using a blade to lift a little burned bark. Living inner bark looks moist. The same advice: wait a couple of months to see new growth before removing a tree, especially an old one.
Some kinds handle scorch well. Coast live oak, Canary Island pine, carob, redwood and sycamore can lose many leaves to scorch and still recover. A tree that puts out green shoots is worth a closer look before it is cut.
Los Angeles County. County Public Works manages about 9,500 parkway trees here. Report a problem street tree to the county, since there is no city government. Trees inside your property line are yours to care for. A local group, Altadena Green, also works to save trees that survived the fire.
County rules can. In unincorporated areas, the county's Oak Tree Permit Ordinance covers work that affects oaks during development. LA County Planning is updating it, with a public draft planned for 2026. Check with the county before removing an oak.
Yes — $600 for tree services, wherever the job is. Burned or weakened wood, rebuild work on the lot and tall conifers shape much of the cost here.
Yes, 24/7. Strong winds off the mountains broke limbs across town in both the 2011 windstorm and the 2025 fire. Call 877-787-7363.
Altadena and its surroundings
Altadena sits high on the slope below the San Gabriel Mountains, at about 1,358 feet.
- ZIP code
- 91001