Tree removal in Smith Valley, NV

Smith Valley is a farming and ranching valley on the West Walker River in Lyon County. About 1,000 homes are spread over roughly 100 square miles at about 4,800 feet. The USDA Forest Service puts about 90% of its buildings in the direct wildfire exposure zone.

At a glance

• About 90% of buildings in the direct wildfire exposure zone
• About 1,000 homes over roughly 100 square miles
• About 14% of households heat mainly with wood
• About 55 miles from our yard, about 80 minutes without traffic

What does a ranch removal involve?

Scale and distance. The trees stand along a lane, around the house and corrals, or in a shelter row beside a field, and there are usually several. The wood is heavy and the truck may be parked a hundred yards off.

This is where owned equipment earns its keep. The 2014 Bobcat T870 track loader carries logs and brush to the trucks, the chipper reduces the limbs, and the dump trucks haul what you do not want to keep. A tall tree near a building is worked from the 75-foot Altec boom truck or taken down by a climber. The arborist plans the sequence at the free estimate so the crew does it in as few days as the job allows.

Old homesteads and new houses

The Census Bureau's housing figures for Smith Valley are unusual. About 64% of homes have been built since 2000, yet about 17% predate 1960. The numbers describe a small community, so treat them as approximate, but the split is real: old ranch houses with trees to match, and newer homes on open parcels.

Around an old house, removal means a very large tree near aging buildings. Around a new one, it more often means clearing native growth and dead trees back from the walls. For brush across a whole parcel, see lot clearing and brush mowing in Smith Valley.

How exposed is Smith Valley to wildfire?

Very. Its risk to homes ranks higher than about 97% of US communities, and its 89.8% share of buildings in the direct exposure zone is the third highest of any place we serve. The 2018 Upper Colony Fire, mapped at 1,201 acres, was centered about 5 miles away, the 2011 Burbank Fire (1,113 acres) about 6 miles, and the 2012 Tre Fire (7,073 acres) about 8 miles.

A dead tree by a house or a hay barn should not wait. University of Nevada, Reno Extension's Living With Fire guide works outward from the building: nothing that burns in the first 5 feet, lean and green to 30 feet, reduced fuel to 100.

Cold, dry and far from the yard

Smith Valley is in USDA zone 6b. The Smith 6 N station, about 6 miles from the valley center, averages about 6.2 inches of precipitation a year and a mean temperature of about 51 degrees (NOAA 1991-2020 normals). Planted trees live on ditch and well water.

At about 55 miles and 80 minutes from our yard, this is scheduled work only. We list no emergency service here and promise no arrival times. If you have a tree you doubt, the time to call is before the wind tests it.

Keeping the wood

About 14% of Smith Valley households heat mainly with wood. If you want the trunk wood left where your saw can reach it, tell the estimator. The estimate will state what stays and what goes.