Tree removal in Aberfoyle Park: what's local
Proclaimed in 1980
This was farmland until the suburb was proclaimed on 10 July 1980; the post office opened on 16 November 1981. The name traces back to Christian Sauerbier, who bought land near Happy Valley in 1845. His son changed the family name to Aberfoyle during the First World War.
Sloping blocks
The suburb climbs onto the foot of the Adelaide Hills. A tree above the house and one below it raise different questions: what it could land on, and how an arborist gets equipment to it.
A busy suburb
About 20 km from the city, Aberfoyle Park had 11,234 residents in 2021, with The Hub shopping centre and Thalassa Park. Lots of houses means lots of shared fences, and lots of trees growing over them.
Tree roots and houses in Aberfoyle Park
Onkaparinga's view is plain. Roots generally only get into pipes that are already damaged and leaking, and cracking usually comes from soil moisture changes, clay soils or poor foundations rather than roots on their own.
So if a plumber finds roots in a broken pipe, fix the pipe. If walls are moving, an engineer is the person to say why. Even for its own street trees, Onkaparinga only weighs removal for damage that's backed by an engineer's report. Our guide to tree roots and your house goes further.
Questions to ask an arborist in Aberfoyle Park
Measure the trunk
Go 1 metre above natural ground. From 1 metre around, SA treats it as regulated; from 2 metres, significant.
Work out whose it is
A verge tree goes through Onkaparinga's assessment request. Your tree, or your neighbour's, follows the rules for private land.
Get the right expert
A plumber for pipes, an engineer for cracks, and an arborist for the tree's health and the application.
Lodge on PlanSA
Removing a regulated tree is a development application, and Onkaparinga needs a site plan with it.
Neighbours' trees in Aberfoyle Park
In SA, you can usually cut back roots and branches that cross onto your land, unless the tree is significant. You can't step onto their side or cut anything that isn't on your property, and the cuttings stay theirs: they can go back over the fence if that does no damage.
If the tree is regulated, check with council before cutting. Falling leaves, gumnuts and twigs generally create no liability for the owner, however full the gutters get. More in neighbours' trees.
Hiring an arborist in Aberfoyle Park
We'd split the problem in three. The blocked drain gets a plumber, the cracked wall gets an engineer, and the tree gets an arborist's view of its health. If all three still point at the tree, the case to Onkaparinga is much stronger, and you'll know removal is actually the fix rather than a guess.