A crew in Portland was topping every street tree on the block, and half the neighborhood thought it looked great

Andrew Hunt · 2026-10-15T16:15:06.003983+00:00

Walked through a neighborhood in northeast Portland last month and saw a crew take about 40 percent off the tops of a row of mature maples. Clean cuts, chipper running, everything looked tidy. A guy on the sidewalk told me it was 'finally letting some light in' and he was happy about it. Thing is, those trees are going to shoot out a mess of weak water sprouts now and the structure is wrecked for years. I get why people like it, the yard is brighter and it looks neat, and some folks say it keeps limbs off the roof. But topping is a hard no in every standard I know, and now the neighbor thinks the guy with the saw did him a favor. Is it on us to say something when the work looks bad but the customer is thrilled? And how do you even start that talk without sounding like you're just trashing the other crew?

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A crew in Portland was topping every street tree on the block, and half the neighborhood thought it looked great | Arborists - The Community Guide