i would have done it 5 years ago ....

i would NOT be upset or angry about it ...

in my world ... every tree is trimmed up as far as necessary so that i can walk and ride my mower under them .. which means that they are trimmed up at least 8 feet.. and i trim off all danglies that come down .. MY EYES ARE VERY MUCH MORE IMPORTANT than any tree ...

all that said .. they should have discussed it with you in advance.. and convinced you that what they did was proper and necessary ...

the tree will be fine.. don't worry about it... and i will bet a buck .. after next years flush .. you will be happy about it ...

the smaller trees should be trimmed the same way in the future.. i would take off one lower branch each year for the next 7 years.. so that in 10 years.. it will look just like the other ....

take a walk through the neighborhood... and walk slowly .. and study all the trees.. and come to appreciate how different people trim their trees ... i bet another buck .. you will start to appreciate the trees that are cared for properly .. or maybe you wont.. whatever you like is up to you ...

nothing is ever wrong when dealing with your tree ... its yours...

relax.. the tree will be fine.. ken

Thanks for your comment Ken. I feel a little better about the tree. In time I'll probably be okay with it. It would not have been my choice. The only trees around here that are cut that high look sick. Hopefully mine will remain healthy. I am still angry with the landscapers for not consulting me - and for the haphazard way they have done the rest of the pruning. I won't get into all of it but I've decided to hire a new landscaper AND learn to do more of this myself. In the long run I think that will be much more satisfying.

I also feel better after reading Ken's comment and it's not even my tree! Those were very calming words.

Ken!!!! You've got the ZEN back!

Debi...I feel better knowing that you're going to get rid of those landscapers! Be sure to let them know why, though. Perhaps it will encourage them to change their ways with future customers.

IF I were to ever hire a landscape maintenance company, they would never be allowed to prune a single shrub or tree on my property. And I would have it in writing.

I liked Ken's post. If you don't trim from the bottom, you have all "bushes". Which is fine, if you want bushes. But I, too, will trim up as high as I can reach so I can see through the yard and not have my hat knocked off when mowing. I have a fairly young weeping willow that I trim UP to about 3 feet, just so I can mow around him. Viburnums and dogwood, I leave alone. They are SUPPOSED to be "bushes". Birds like the thicket effect

The manager of the landscaping company came out today. I did give him an earful - I had a few days to calm down so I was not unreasonable but told him about the tree and all of my other complaints. He said that if I were to "invite him back onto my property" he would be sure to put me on the list of customers that he makes sure approve all work before it's done. He was actually very apologetic and asked what he could do NOW to make things better. I'm still unhappy about the tree, but I'll get used to it and make the best of it. I'm considering keeping my landscapers. They only get one more chance - on Monday they're coming out to take care of some things we discussed today. I also would like to say that before yesterday I had never heard of the GardenWeb forums before. It's a wonderful source of information - and very nice people too! I'm glad I found it!

I am happy to report that our association has agreed to pay for the treatments to our River Birch. I guess it was a heated board meeting. I have to water the roots 2 times a day for 1/2 hour each and we are using a special root fertilizer that was recommended by the tree expert at Earl May. The trees turned all yellow and the leaves fell off. Have done one fertilizer treatment and I water them everyday and they look like they are coming back. It is still very sad that we lost our shade and privacy!!!! But I will be thrilled if I can save them. I totally do not reccomend limbing up River Birch in hot summer. What I have learned is that the root system of River Birch are very close to the top of the ground so when you limb them up the root system looses the shade and burn up.
Thanks for listening and all your support.

one of the posts sounds like my tree. 9 years old and the lower limbs knock my hat off. i am going out now to eliminate that problem . greay. thnx

We have 2 River Birch in our yard. We have lived here 4 yrs and are pretty sure the trees have been in the yard 10 to 15 yrs. They have been properly pruned up, but some of the branches are hanging low enough that you walk into the ends of them on our deck. When is the best time of year to prune these back a bit? I know that they will "weep" their sap more if you prune at certain times, and i would like to avoid this if possible.