Tell us the job

Sydney suburbs

Tree removal in St Ives

Tree removal, pruning and stump grinding in St Ives, matched to a local arborist.

In St Ives, the first question for any tree job is whether the tree is part of Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest, because it's critically endangered and Ku-ring-gai applies none of its exemptions to it.

  • We match you with the local arborist who does your kind of job.
  • Tell us the job once, and the arborist who takes it calls you.
  • Storm damage and fallen trees flagged urgent.

Tree job in St Ives?

What needs doing?

If anyone is in danger, call 000. For storm damage to your home, call the SES. Then tell us the job.

Only one local arborist gets your number.

A chainsaw held in two gloved hands cutting through a log on the ground, chainsaw chaps and boots behind it

Matched by the job, not just the postcode

A big gum over a roof, a stump and a council report are different jobs, so the job comes first.

Only one local arborist gets your number.

Your contact details go to one arborist for your job, so you deal with one person.

Storm jobs flagged urgent

Pick storm damage and the arborist sees it marked urgent. If anyone is in danger, call 000 first.

Council rules before the cut

Many councils protect bigger trees. The permit guides cover every state, so you can check first.

What happens next

A local arborist calls you.

Tell us the job

  1. Tell us the job

    What the tree needs and your postcode. A few taps.

  2. We pass it on

    To a local arborist near your postcode.

  3. They call you

    They talk it through, usually see the tree, and quote in writing. You decide.

Tree removal in St Ives: what's local

Turpentine country

Native turpentines were once abundant here, and Ku-ring-gai says Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest still grows along Mona Vale Road. Only 0.5 per cent of the original forest is left in the council area, and NSW lists it as critically endangered.

Parks to the north and east

Garigal National Park lies to the east and south-east, and Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park borders the north. The 123 hectare Ku-ring-gai Wildflower Garden sits on the north side of Mona Vale Road.

Houses with room for trees

About 70% of St Ives homes are separate houses, and council's urban forest study found St Ives had by far the most space for new trees of any Ku-ring-gai suburb, with 5552 planting spots.

Ausgrid's lines, and yours

Ausgrid prunes trees growing close to or touching the powerlines between street poles, and has St Ives on its program for October and November 2026. Keeping trees off the line from the pole to your house is your job, arranged with Ausgrid.

Tree jobs you can do yourself in St Ives

You can

  • Hand-weed under the trees instead of mowing, as council suggests, so seedlings can take hold.
  • Pull out garden weeds before they spread into the bush.
  • Keep pets out of the bushland, and keep garden waste on your side of the fence.

Leave to an arborist

  • Working out whether a tree is a forest turpentine or ironbark, or a planted tree.
  • Any pruning or removal of a forest tree, once council has approved it.
  • Pruning near the service line to your house.

Tree removal permits in St Ives

Ku-ring-gai says tree applications take about 6 to 8 weeks from its written acknowledgement, and permits last 12 months. Fees are paid once the application is accepted and aren't refunded if it's refused.

So start early if a tree is in the way of a renovation. Tree work that's part of a development application or complying development is dealt with there, not through a separate tree application.

Ku-ring-gai's housing plans put most new dwellings to 2036 along the Pacific Highway and around a handful of local centres, St Ives among them.

Hiring an arborist in St Ives

Have an arborist identify the tree before anything else. A turpentine or ironbark near Mona Vale Road is a very different application from a planted exotic. Then lodge with a clear reason, good photos and a site map, since those are three of the four documents council asks for, and the fourth is the owner's consent.

Tree removal in St Ives: common questions

What happens if a tree is removed without approval in St Ives?

Ku-ring-gai says unauthorised removals are investigated and prosecuted when there's enough evidence. In June 2026 a Killara owner was fined $10,000 plus costs in Hornsby Local Court over a 24 metre Norfolk Island pine. Council takes reports.

Can I use 10/50 to clear trees next to Garigal or Ku-ring-gai Chase?

Only if your address is in a 10/50 entitlement area, which the RFS online tool confirms on the day. Even then, the code doesn't allow clearing that conflicts with critically endangered communities, so turpentine forest can't be cleared under it.

Need an arborist in St Ives?

Pick the job and give your postcode, and a local arborist calls you.

Tree job in St Ives?

What needs doing?

Only one local arborist gets your number.

Tree services across Sydney

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Arborists near St Ives

Tree permits in New South Wales

More on tree removal in St Ives

Sources

Tree rules change, so check with your council before anything is cut. How we write and check these pages.