Quick answer
Yes. We take on removals, pruning and lot clearing throughout Burlington County, from river towns like Burlington City and Willingboro to Marlton and the Pinelands-edge lots beyond. What a job looks like depends on which township you are in, since several now run their own removal and replacement rules, and on whether the tree stands in sandy pine ground or an older suburban yard.
799 square miles, from pine sand to river towns
Burlington County covers 799.29 square miles of land, more than any other county in New Jersey, and counted 461,860 residents in 2020. That spread matters for tree work. A call from a cul-de-sac in Mount Laurel and a call from a wooded lot near the Pine Barrens are different jobs, with different access, different wood and different cleanup.
The Pine Barrens take up a good portion of the southern and eastern county. About 334,000 acres of Burlington County, roughly 64 percent, lie inside the state Pinelands Area, and its pitch pine upland forest is among the most fire-prone in the country. On lots at that edge the work is usually thinning pine, cutting brush back from the house and opening a driveway, not one big shade tree. Our page on clearing a wooded lot explains how that kind of job is scoped.
Jobs that come up most in Burlington County
The county's mix of pine ground, old river towns and postwar subdivisions shows up in what people call about.
- Lot & Land ClearingPitch pine lots near the Pinelands edge opened up for a driveway, an addition or a cleared zone around the house.
- Storm Damage CleanupUprooted and snapped trees after storms like the 2021 tornado that crossed from Burlington Township into Bucks County.
- Tree of Heaven RemovalStands along fences and lot edges, cut and stump-treated so the lanternfly host does not sprout back.
- Ash Tree RemovalAsh with thinning tops from the borer, taken down before the dead wood turns brittle.
- Tree PlantingReplacement trees where a township chapter calls for them after a removal.
Jennifer Lane, Beverly Road and the Ida tornado
On September 1, 2021, the remnants of Ida spun up an EF-1 tornado with 90 mph winds in Burlington Township near the Edgewater Park line. It uprooted numerous trees along Jennifer Lane and Beverly Road, then crossed the Delaware on a path 2.8 miles long and 200 yards wide and lifted just short of downtown Bristol. It was one of seven tornadoes Ida's remnants produced across the region.
Uprooted trees are a different job from snapped ones. The root plate can still hold the trunk under tension, and it may tip back toward its hole once the trunk is cut free, so the cuts are planned around that movement. If one is resting on your house tonight, the emergency tree removal line is answered around the clock.
Tree of heaven, lanternfly and dying ash
Burlington County was inside New Jersey's spotted lanternfly quarantine by August 2020, along with Camden, Gloucester and Mercer. The insect's preferred host is tree of heaven, the fast-growing weed tree that comes up along fences, rail lines and the backs of commercial lots. Cutting one without treating the stump tends to bring back a thicket of sprouts, so we handle tree of heaven removal as a cut plus a stump treatment.
Ash is the other species to check. New Jersey confirmed its first emerald ash borer in May 2014, and infested ash usually die three to five years after the larvae move in. An ash that still carries a full crown can sometimes be treated; one with a thinning top and flaking bark is usually a removal, and it gets harder to climb safely the longer it stands dead.
Burlington Township, Southampton and Moorestown each write their own tree rules
There is no single county tree permit. Burlington Township adopted a removal and replacement chapter on April 23, 2024: street trees from 2.5 inches DBH and other trees from 6 inches are covered, residents taking fewer than four trees per acre in five years are exempt, the fee is $100, and replacements run from one to four trees by trunk size, or $50 to $250 per tree in lieu.
Southampton Township's 2024 chapter sets the same size thresholds, asks for one to five replacement trees per tree removed, and carries fines up to $2,000. In Moorestown, the trees in the curb strip belong to the township and need a Public Works permit before anyone trims or removes them. Our guide to South Jersey tree permits shows how to check the rule for your own town.
Burlington County tree questions
Yes. Lots near the pitch pine forest are mostly thinning, brush clearing and opening access rather than single big takedowns. Tell us the township when you call, since removal and replacement rules differ from town to town.
No. Tree rules are set township by township. Burlington Township, Southampton and Moorestown each have their own chapter, so the answer depends on the municipality your property sits in.
The county has been inside New Jersey's quarantine since at least August 2020. If tree of heaven grows on your property, that is where the insect gathers and where control usually starts.
If it is touching a wire, call the power company first and keep everyone back. For a tree on the house, a car or the driveway, call us; the phones are answered 24 hours a day.
Burlington County towns with their own pages
Tree job somewhere in Burlington County?
Call and tell us the town and what the tree is doing. We will come look and check the local rule before any cutting starts.