Which pine is it?
Several quite different trees get called pine. Among the true pines (Pinus), radiata or Monterey pine is a tall evergreen to about 25 m, with needles in groups of three and woody cones. It's native to California and grown here for timber, windbreaks and as an ornamental, sometimes going wild in cooler districts of NSW. Maritime pine, from the Mediterranean, is another tall windbreak tree, and slash pine turns up in Queensland.
Norfolk Island pine (Araucaria heterophylla) isn't a true pine, and the City of Sydney expects 20 to 25 m from one as a street tree. Hoop and bunya pines aren't true pines either, and councils tend to treat this group very differently from radiata.
Weed, windbreak or heritage tree?
Radiata pine seeds have wing-like structures and can travel up to a kilometre on the wind, Weeds Australia says, and the tree invades open, dry country. It isn't a declared weed in any state or territory, but Brisbane City Council notes it's regarded as an environmental weed in every state and the ACT, and a significant one in Victoria and SA. Brisbane also lists slash pine as Council Pest Vegetation under its Natural Assets Local Law.
None of that means a pine can come out without asking. In Victoria, Boroondara needs a permit to remove a canopy tree even when it's a recognised weed species.
The named pines sit at the other end. Port Macquarie-Hastings Council lists Norfolk Island pines as a permit trigger, the Norfolk Island pines at Mona Vale Beach are a local heritage item, Kingston's significant tree schedule includes a maritime pine in Mentone, and Brisbane's local law lists hoop and bunya pines from a 60 cm trunk diameter.
Can I be fined for taking a pine down?
Yes. As reported in June 2026, a Killara owner in Ku-ring-gai was fined $10,000 in Hornsby Local Court for removing a 24 metre Norfolk Island pine without consent. NSW Planning also lists higher penalty notices for clearing larger, high-value trees. The NSW permits page has the detail, and the tree removal permits page covers other states.
Signs a pine needs an arborist's eye
- Two trunks rising from one fork. Gardening Australia showed a Bribie Island pine split in half in a storm at a fork like that, because the two young trunks never attached securely.
- The ground lifting or moving at the base on a windy day (only watch from somewhere safe).
- A growing pile of dead or rotten branches underneath.
- Sudden needle loss, or new growth that fails to appear.
Looking after a pine yourself
You can
- Rake needles and pick up cones from paths and the lawn.
- Pull radiata or slash pine seedlings by hand while they're small.
- Take off small, low dead branches with a pruning saw, standing on the ground.
Leave to an arborist
- Anything above head height on a tall pine.
- A split or weak fork, or a lean that has changed.
- Removal near the house, which on a 25 m tree can mean a crane: see large and crane removals.
- Grinding out the stump.
Pine trees: what to do next
Name the tree first, because a weedy radiata and a heritage Norfolk Island pine sit under completely different rules. Then, for anything tall near the house, we'd get an arborist to check the forks and the base, and we'd ring the council before booking a removal.
Want an arborist to look at it?
Tell us the job and your postcode, and a local arborist calls you to talk it through.