--- title: Tree Pruning in Old Southwest Reno (89509) | Battle Born url: https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/old-southwest-reno/tree-trimming/ business: Battle Born Tree Service address: 6301 US Highway 50 East, Carson City, NV 89701 phone: 775.232.8243 hours: Office Monday-Friday 8:30 am-5:00 pm; phones answered seven days a week; 24-hour emergency service credentials: ISA Certified Arborist WE-11728A on staff; Nevada Business License # 20131580674; fully insured type: Tree service (removal, crane work, pruning, stump grinding, defensible space, snow removal, firewood) --- - [Home](https://battleborntreeservice.com/) - [Service areas](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/) - [Old Southwest Reno](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/old-southwest-reno/) - Tree trimming and pruning # Tree trimming and pruning in Old Southwest Reno (ZIP 89509) Tree trimming in Old Southwest Reno is canopy care for the oldest residential trees in the city: about 62% of homes in ZIP 89509 were built before 1980 and about a quarter before 1960. Battle Born Tree Service prunes these large shade trees with ISA Certified Arborist WE-11728A on staff, which matters here because street trees in Reno may only be pruned by a Certified Arborist. This is the part of Reno people picture when they think of tree-lined streets. The canopy took generations to grow, and it is held together by pruning that nobody notices when it is done well. ## At a glance - About 62% of homes in ZIP 89509 predate 1980, about 25% predate 1960 - Crown cleaning and weight reduction for large shade trees - Street trees: Reno Tree Work Permit and Certified Arborist - 75-foot boom truck and climbers for crowns above the roofline ## What does a mature shade tree need from a pruning visit? A mature shade tree needs a look from the ground, crown cleaning, weight reduction where it is needed, clearance off the roof and chimney, and a clean-up of brush and wood. - A look from the ground first. The arborist walks around the tree, checks the base, the main forks and the ends of the long limbs, and tells you what was found. - Crown cleaning. Dead, dying, broken and crossing branches are removed through the whole crown, not just the part over the driveway. - Weight reduction where it is needed. Limbs that reach far over a house or the street are shortened to a side branch large enough to take over. - Clearance. Branches are lifted off the roof, the chimney and the neighbor's side as agreed. - Clean-up. Brush is chipped, wood is hauled, and the yard and the street are raked and blown. The cuts follow ANSI A300, the pruning standard for our industry. It does not accept topping, and neither do we. ## Who is allowed to prune the tree by the street? On many Old Southwest blocks the biggest tree stands in the strip between the sidewalk and the curb. That strip is usually City right-of-way. Pruning there needs a City of Reno Tree Work Permit, and only a Certified Arborist can get one. Call Reno Urban Forestry at 775-321-8373 to confirm whether your tree is public. If it is, tell us when you ask for the estimate so the permit is handled before a crew is scheduled. Trees inside your lot line need no City permit. ## Why do old trees here carry so much dead wood? Water, mostly. The Reno 2.4 SSW rain gauge, about a mile from the center of this ZIP, averages 9.6 inches of precipitation a year (NOAA 1991 to 2020 normals). A tree with a crown as wide as a house cannot live on that. It depends on lawn irrigation, and yards have been converted, sold and re-landscaped many times over the life of the tree. Each dry spell shows up later as dead limbs. [Dead wooding explained](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/dead-wooding-explained/) describes how they are removed, and [drought stress and dieback](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/drought-stress-and-dieback/) covers the warning signs. ## When is pruning not enough? When the structure itself is failing. A crack in a main fork, a hollow at the base or mushrooms on the trunk are things pruning cannot fix. Sometimes [cabling and bracing](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/cabling-bracing/) buys a valued tree more years. Sometimes the honest advice is [removal](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/old-southwest-reno/tree-removal/), and on lots this tight that is often crane work. The elms and cottonwoods common to old Nevada neighborhoods each have their own habits. See [Siberian elms](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/siberian-elms-old-nevada-lots/) and [cottonwoods: keep, prune or remove](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/cottonwoods-keep-prune-or-remove/). ### Sources - [City of Reno Urban Forestry: Tree FAQs](https://www.reno.gov/parks-and-recreation/parks-facilities/urban-forestry/tree-faqs.php) (read October 17, 2026) - [Truckee Meadows Water Authority: Local Tree Ordinances](https://tmwa.com/article/local-tree-ordinances/) (read October 1, 2026) - [U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 five-year estimates, ZIP Code Tabulation Area 89509](https://data.census.gov/) (retrieved October 1, 2026) - [NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020, Reno 2.4 SSW station](https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/products/land-based-station/us-climate-normals) (retrieved October 1, 2026) - **Drive from our yard:** about 41 min 32.8 miles - **Elevation:** 4,593 ft USGS - **USDA hardiness zone:** 7b 2023 map - **Homes built before 1980:** 62% median year built 1975 Sources: drive time from our yard at 6301 US Highway 50 East, free-flow, OSRM / Census Geocoder; elevation, USGS 3DEP; hardiness zone, USDA 2023 map; housing figures, U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 five-year estimates; wildfire risk, USDA Forest Service Wildfire Risk to Communities (April 2026 data). Retrieved October 1, 2026. ### Rules here Private lot: no City of Reno permit to prune. Planting strip or other City right-of-way: Tree Work Permit required, and the work must be done by a Certified Arborist. Reno Urban Forestry, 775-321-8373. ### Start here - [About the service: Tree trimming and pruning](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/tree-trimming-pruning/) - [Tree service in Old Southwest Reno](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/old-southwest-reno/) ### Talk to the office [775.232.8243](tel:775.232.8243) | Monday to Friday | 8:30 am - 5:00 pm | |---|---| | Saturday and Sunday | Office closed, phones answered | Phones answered seven days a week. 24-hour emergency service. [Free estimate](#quote) ### Related - [Old Southwest Reno (89509)](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/old-southwest-reno/) - [Dead wooding](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/dead-wooding/) - [Tree cabling and bracing](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/cabling-bracing/) - [Siberian elms: the tree on every old Nevada lot](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/siberian-elms-old-nevada-lots/) - [Why topping a tree is not pruning](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/why-tree-topping-is-not-pruning/) - [Certified arborist in Old Southwest Reno](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/old-southwest-reno/arborist/) ## Other services in Old Southwest Reno [Tree removal](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/old-southwest-reno/tree-removal/) [Stump grinding](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/old-southwest-reno/stump-grinding/) [Emergency tree service](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/old-southwest-reno/emergency-tree-service/) [Crane-assisted tree removal](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/old-southwest-reno/crane-tree-removal/) [Certified arborist](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/old-southwest-reno/arborist/) [Snow removal](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/old-southwest-reno/snow-removal/) ## Tree trimming and pruning in nearby towns [Reno](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/reno/tree-trimming/) [South Reno](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/south-reno/tree-trimming/) [Galena and Mt. Rose Highway](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/galena-mt-rose/tree-trimming/) [Caughlin Ranch](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/caughlin-ranch/tree-trimming/) [Northwest Reno and Somersett](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/northwest-reno/tree-trimming/) [the North Valleys and Stead](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/north-valleys/tree-trimming/) [Sparks](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/sparks/tree-trimming/) [Spanish Springs](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/spanish-springs/tree-trimming/) [Sun Valley](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/sun-valley/tree-trimming/) [Lemmon Valley](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/lemmon-valley/tree-trimming/) [Golden Valley](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/golden-valley/tree-trimming/) [Cold Springs](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/cold-springs/tree-trimming/) [Verdi](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/verdi/tree-trimming/) [Mogul](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/mogul/tree-trimming/) [Washoe Valley](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/washoe-valley/tree-trimming/) [Palomino Valley](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/palomino-valley/tree-trimming/) [Southeast Reno and Hidden Valley](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/southeast-reno/tree-trimming/) [West Reno](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/west-reno/tree-trimming/) [North Central Reno and the University area](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/north-central-reno/tree-trimming/) [East Sparks](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/east-sparks/tree-trimming/) [North Sparks and Wingfield Springs](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/north-sparks/tree-trimming/) ## Tree trimming and pruning questions in Old Southwest Reno Still have a question? Call [775.232.8243](tel:775.232.8243). Phones are answered seven days a week. ### How do I know if my street tree in Old Southwest Reno belongs to the City? Call Reno Urban Forestry at 775-321-8373 with your address. The strip between sidewalk and curb is usually City right-of-way. ### Can you prune a tree that hangs over from my neighbor's yard? We need permission from the tree's owner to work on it. Talk to your neighbor first; an attorney, not a tree service, decides legal questions. ### Will heavy equipment damage my old lawn and walks? The arborist plans where trucks and lifts set up before the job. Where equipment should not go, climbers do the work on ropes. ### How long does it take your crew to get to 89509? About 41 minutes without traffic from our Carson City yard, about 33 miles.