Certified Arborist Services in Broward County

What an ISA Certified Arborist is, and what it is not

An ISA Certified Arborist has earned a credential from the International Society of Arboriculture. It takes documented experience and a passing score on a written exam, and it must be kept current with continuing education. It is a certification, not a government license. Florida has no state tree-contractor license, so no state board issues one, which makes the credential one of the few independent signs of real training.

It does not prove insurance, a clean safety record or good equipment, so check those separately. Broward Tree Services connects you with a local crew that has an ISA Certified Arborist on it. Ask for the arborist's name and certification number when you book, and verify it with ISA yourself.

Arborist report or tree crew?

A crew cuts. An arborist decides what should be cut, treated or left alone, and writes it down when someone else needs to rely on it. An arborist's opinion is worth getting first in these cases:

• Removal permits. Many Broward municipalities ask for an arborist letter or report with an application to remove a protected or large tree. Rules differ by city, so see our tree removal permit guide and confirm with your city.
• Protected and specimen trees. A report records species, size and condition, the evidence a city reviews.
• Storm hazards. A leaning trunk, lifted root plate or cracked union needs a qualified opinion before anyone decides to keep or remove it.
• Insurance claims and HOA disputes. A written, independent assessment beats competing opinions.
• Construction near trees. Trenching, slabs and pools cut roots. An arborist can mark the root zone to protect before work starts.

Tree risk assessment (ISA TRAQ) in plain language

TRAQ stands for Tree Risk Assessment Qualification, an ISA course that gives arborists a standard way to rate a tree. It asks three questions. How likely is the tree, or part of it, to fail? How likely is it to hit something? How bad would that be? A split union over a bedroom is a bigger problem than the same tree in an empty lot.

The result is a rating from low to extreme, plus options: prune, cable, treat, restrict the area underneath, or remove. TRAQ is separate from the certification, so if risk is why you are calling, ask whether the arborist holds it.

Root, soil and pest problems common in Broward

• Lethal bronzing on palms. A disease spread by an insect. Early signs are premature fruit drop and fronds that yellow, then bronze, from the bottom up. Preventive injections can protect healthy palms; an infected palm usually dies.
• Ganoderma butt rot. A fungus that rots the lower trunk of palms. Shelf-like conks at the base are the warning. There is no cure, and a palm with advanced rot can fall without notice.
• Laurel wilt. A fungus carried by a beetle that attacks avocado and bay trees. Leaves wilt and stay on the branch, brown and dry.
• Ficus whitefly. A sap-feeding insect that can strip a ficus hedge or tree of leaves. Systemic treatment works.
• Construction root damage and lightning. Cut roots and fill soil show up as decline years later, and lightning can leave hidden internal splits.

If the answer is that the tree can be saved, our tree health and disease treatment service picks up from the diagnosis.

Structural pruning before hurricane season, not hat-racking

Hat-racking, also called topping, means cutting main limbs back to stubs. It is often sold as storm protection and does the opposite. The tree sends up weakly attached sprouts that snap in wind, and the large wounds invite decay. Many municipalities prohibit or restrict topping, so a crew that offers it is a red flag.

Structural pruning removes dead and crossing limbs, reduces weight at the ends of long branches and thins selectively so wind passes through. A common guideline is to remove no more than about a quarter of the live canopy in one visit. Do it well before June 1. See our hurricane tree prep and tree trimming pages, and for a tree beyond saving, our tree removal crew.

What a consultation and written report include

The arborist identifies the species, examines the root flare and trunk, looks up through the crown, checks soil and drainage, and notes what is nearby that could be hit. Then you talk through the options. When a permit office, insurer or HOA needs something in writing, a report usually contains:

• Property, date and who requested it
• Species, trunk diameter, height and spread for each tree
• Condition findings with photos, and a risk rating where risk is the question
• Clear recommendations: prune, treat, monitor, protect or remove
• The author's name, signature and ISA credential details

A report is an opinion on one day, and a big storm can change a tree overnight.

Certified arborist help across Broward County

We cover the whole county. Local city pages:

Call (954) 754-6673 and tell us what the tree is doing.