Wagstaffe
Tree lopping in Wagstaffe
Tree lopping, pruning and removal in Wagstaffe, from the heritage pines by the boat shed to the blocks on the bush edge of the point.
Tree work in Wagstaffe
Pines that outlived the ferry master's cottage
The ferry master's cottage has been demolished, but the State Heritage Inventory says two mature Norfolk Island pines remain on the waterfront, along with the boat shed. The council's local plan lists the boat shed and Norfolk Island pines on Wagstaffe Avenue as one heritage item, so the trees are part of the listing itself. Council consent comes first for any cut to them, and a job next door keeps its machinery and drop zone clear of their roots and lower branches.
The bush on the point beside the houses is managed as a fire edge. NPWS fire history records prescribed burns named Wagstaff Point in July 1996 and May 2023, and one spelt Wagstaffe Point in March 2009. Each burn lowers the fuel on the point itself, and the blocks that back onto it need the same done on their side of the fence.
Services in Wagstaffe
Roofs on the fire edge and trees on the heritage list
Tree pruning
Canopy lifted clear of roofs and gutters on the blocks against the point, before the fire season rather than during it.
Tree removal
Trees beside the listed pines or the listed house taken down in sections, so nothing lands on either.
Tree removal permits
Which approval a tree needs here, from heritage consent for a listed item to the council's ordinary tree rules.
How it works
From the first message to a written quote
The council question is settled before any price, and nothing is booked until you have said yes to a quote in writing.
- 1
Tell us what the tree is doing
Where it stands, what it is close to and what you would like done about it.

- 2
A contractor comes to see it
A tree contractor who covers your suburb looks at the tree, the access and what is underneath it.

- 3
The council question is answered
Height, trunk size, distance from the house and the species decide whether a permit or an exemption applies.

- 4
You get it in writing
Scope, timber, stump and date on one page, and nothing is booked until you have said yes.

Wagstaffe questions
A tree listed with a house, and wildfires on the point
Can a tree listed with a house be pruned?
Only once the council has agreed. Its local plan lists a house and significant tree on Mulhall Street together, which makes the tree part of the listed item. The listed house beside it also limits where cut limbs can be lowered.
Are there records of wildfire on the point?
Yes, small ones. NPWS fire history lists small wildfires named Wagstaff Pt in January 1984 and March 1985, each under one hectare. Fallen timber and dead trees near the house are the first things to clear before summer.

