ArborTrue — Local services in Houston

Today I had an appointment with Austin, an arborist from ArborTrue. Austin clearly enjoys his job. As Austin’s newest client I have confidence in his ability to assess my concerns and what I want done. He called ahead, arrived promptly at the time we agreed upon, was professional and very knowledgeable. He responded to all my questions with honest answers and the scientific evidence to support it. Before Austin left I had a line by line itemized quote. I could pick and choose tasks according to my budget. (Be advised: Austin will tell you if some tasks should NOT be done without a different task preceding or following for the health of the tree and efficacy of treatments)

This is my third experience with ArborTrue. Every time they come to bat they hit it out of the park.

The tree’s highest good is Austin’s, and ArborTrue’s, focus and goal. These long-lived anchors of the ecosystem add value to my property. Trees are an investment deserving smart maintenance. After a five minute visual investigation of the tree bark, soil quality, growth patterns of visible knees of the tree roots, Austin had an immediate solution worked up with several therapeutic and targeted preventative approaches for my forty-five year old Live Oak which is being attacked by a fungus. Planted in 1980, my Live Oak tree is now equivalent upwards of $50,000 in retail value due to its size. It provides shade to my house from the brutal Texas sun. The healthier the tree is the stronger and flexible it can be to withstand hurricanes, floods and careless humans with sharp tools. I can go on and on about why my tree is worthy of ArborTrue’s care but if you have read this far into a Google review it’s my final suggestion is don’t hesitate. Request for Austin to visit your property and evaluate the situation. If you decide to hire ArborTrue then Austin’s evaluation (or any of their highly educated and trained arborists) is included. Take notes because he’s going share a lot you never knew about trees and your property’s micro ecosystem. He is honest if you should leave something alone.

My photos show the aforementioned Live Oak’s fungal infection, the fantastic trimming ArborTrue did last spring, and the moon and a rainbow framed by the Live Oak’s leaves.

Thank you, Austin, for helping us get on the road to...

I wold not trust their diagnosis. First of all they are the only ones that charge for a visit. Over a $100. I made the mistake of trusting them. I have called other companies to get another visit and NONE have charge me. When the arborist came she gave contradictory information of what I already knew. Once she left they send me a estimate of over $1000 to fix my tree. WOW! I emailed them as I could not find the name anything online based on the name she wrote on the diagnosis. First they took over a week to reply back. Once she emailed with the actual name, I started doing my own research. HMMM surprise surprise not what she said. Based on the my research and other companies I have talked to, the fungus that she claims my tree has is INCURABLE and the only way to minimize the damage is to cut the branch that is affected. She said nothing about this. So I started questioning their methods and their diagnosis. After several emails back and forward from their technician, still none of these emails answered my questions. I got an email from the manager saying that they are the best at what they do and this why they charge what they charge. But yet they still are not answering my questions. This is there reply: "If you still have questions please feel free to ask me.I am quite certain most arborists will give you the standard answer as they are not on the cutting edge and do not have molecular detection technology. We are more than busy with work and have no interest in selling anything to you." WOW. All I have been doing is asking questions, but still he says I can ask him questions? I replied back to him letting him that I have already asked my questions, very simply ones. Needles to say he never replied back. They are big when talking about their technology and molecular detection. I will like to see when they use it. When their employee was here, she USE NONE of their famous technology to diagnose my tree. So how can you say my tree has this or that and ready to charge me over $1000 without one single test? Funny how everyone else doesn't know what they are doing. Fix my bill and then will talk. Sure they are great if you don't question their methods. For what I can see and read, once you start asking questions their...

Last year, I had the opportunity to attend a consultation/public discussion with Brad Philips under an old live oak located in a public area in Coldspring TX. Brad's description of the oak tree soil changed how I viewed my own front yard where grass would not grow under my own live oak trees. I immediately laid several inches of mulch and left the fallen leaves as nature intended. My trees have never looked better!!! This year, I requested an ArborTrue onsite consultation. Brittany reviewed the trees inside my home and the trees & perennials outside. She described ways to improve the health of each area inoculating with "soil beneficials" (bacteria and fungi), adding organic material inside and out, and controlling water. Several mature azaleas had already been destroyed one limb at a time over the last two years which Brittany diagnosed as Phytophthora (root rot). Martin arrived on schedule and treated the soil and several trees this month. Martin and I worked out a step by step plan to get the soil back to health. My only regret is that I did not request an onsite consultation when the azalea branches started drying up. I look forward to Brittany's follow-up...