--- title: Brush & Lot Clearing in Virginia City, NV | Battle Born url: https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/virginia-city/lot-clearing-brush-mowing/ 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/) - [Virginia City](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/virginia-city/) - Lot clearing and brush mowing # Lot clearing and brush mowing in Virginia City, NV Lot clearing in Virginia City is mostly hand work: the town is built on steep, terraced streets where a mower often cannot go. Battle Born Tree Service sends a saw crew and a chipper for the tight lots and uses the tracked Bobcat on the parcels that have room, about 16 minutes from our yard. Virginia City stands at about 6,200 feet on the side of a mountain. The Census Bureau counts about 340 housing units in less than one square mile, and more than half of them were built before 1960. Brush here grows between old buildings, behind retaining walls and up the slope above the top street. ## At a glance - Wildfire risk to homes higher than 99.4% of US communities - Hand cutting and chipping on steep, terraced lots - About 54% of homes built before 1960 - About 11 miles and 16 minutes from our yard ## Why not just mow it? Slope and space. A track loader is steady on moderate grades, but a lot that drops a full story between the street above and the street below is past that limit. Many lots are also too narrow to turn a machine around. On those sites the crew cuts brush and small trees with saws, drags the material to a level spot and runs it through the chipper. Chips go into the truck. Where a parcel on the edge of town opens onto gentler ground, the brush mower or masticating head takes over. | Site | Method | |---|---| | Narrow terraced lot in town | Hand cutting, chipper at the street | | Bank above or below a retaining wall | Hand cutting, material carried out | | Open parcel at the edge of town | Brush mowing or masticating | | Large old tree among buildings | Crane-assisted removal | ## What do the fire figures say about Virginia City? They are the highest of any community we serve. The USDA Forest Service ranks wildfire risk to homes in Virginia City higher than 99.4% of US communities and 95% of Nevada communities. It places 75% of buildings in the indirect exposure zone and 25% in the direct zone. Indirect exposure points at embers and fire moving building to building. In a town of closely spaced wooden structures, the dry weeds and brush between them are the link. Cutting that out is modest work with an outsized effect. ## Old lots hold surprises The median home here dates from 1956, and many lots have been in use far longer than the houses on them (ACS 2020-2024; a very small community, so the figures are approximate). Brush can hide old foundations, fence wire, scrap and holes. Tell the arborist what you know about the ground before the estimate, and walk it together. Anything that looks like an old excavation is left alone and reported to you. We clear vegetation and debris; we do not fill or cap anything. ## Timing around the snow The Virginia City weather station averages 46.4 inches of snowfall and 11.7 inches of precipitation a year (NOAA 1991-2020 normals), far more snow than Carson City below. Hand clearing on a slope is best done on bare, dry ground, so most of this work falls between spring melt and the first storms of autumn. ## Rules to check We have not found a Storey County permit for cutting brush on private land. Virginia City is a historic town, so ask the county before removing anything attached to a structure or changing the ground itself. ### Sources - [USDA Forest Service, Wildfire Risk to Communities](https://wildfirerisk.org/download/) (April 2026 data) - [U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 five-year estimates and Gazetteer land area, Virginia City CDP](https://data.census.gov/) (retrieved October 1, 2026) - [NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020, Virginia City station](https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/products/land-based-station/us-climate-normals) (retrieved October 1, 2026) - **Drive from our yard:** about 16 min 10.7 miles - **Elevation:** 6,198 ft USGS - **USDA hardiness zone:** 7a 2023 map - **Homes built before 1980:** 76% median year built 1956 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. ### Start here - [About the service: Lot clearing](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/lot-clearing/) - [Tree service in Virginia City](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/virginia-city/) ### 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 - [Lot clearing](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/lot-clearing/) - [Virginia City](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/virginia-city/) - [Defensible space and fire mitigation in Virginia City](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/virginia-city/defensible-space/) - [Mastication vs brush mowing vs hand clearing](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/mastication-vs-brush-mowing-vs-hand-clearing/) - [Wildfire risk to homes in Northern Nevada: what the numbers say](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/wildfire-risk-to-homes-northern-nevada/) - [Dayton, the Comstock and Lyon County](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/dayton-comstock-lyon/) ## Other services in Virginia City [Tree removal](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/virginia-city/tree-removal/) [Tree trimming and pruning](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/virginia-city/tree-trimming/) [Stump grinding](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/virginia-city/stump-grinding/) [Emergency tree service](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/virginia-city/emergency-tree-service/) [Defensible space and fire mitigation](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/virginia-city/defensible-space/) [Crane-assisted tree removal](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/virginia-city/crane-tree-removal/) [Certified arborist](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/virginia-city/arborist/) [Firewood](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/virginia-city/firewood/) ## Lot clearing and brush mowing in nearby towns [Dayton](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/dayton/lot-clearing-brush-mowing/) [Stagecoach](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/stagecoach/lot-clearing-brush-mowing/) [Silver Springs](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/silver-springs/lot-clearing-brush-mowing/) [Fernley](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/fernley/lot-clearing-brush-mowing/) [Yerington](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/yerington/lot-clearing-brush-mowing/) [Smith Valley](https://battleborntreeservice.com/service-areas/smith-valley/lot-clearing-brush-mowing/) ## Lot clearing and brush mowing questions in Virginia City Still have a question? Call [775.232.8243](tel:775.232.8243). Phones are answered seven days a week. ### Can you get equipment up to Virginia City? Yes. The chipper and chip truck travel on the highway like any truck. Whether the track loader is useful depends on the lot, and we decide that at the free estimate. ### Do you clear brush between buildings in town? Yes, at the request of the owner of that ground. Tight spaces are cut by hand. ### What happens to the brush you cut? It is chipped and hauled. Nothing is burned on site. ### Can you remove dead trees during the same visit? Yes. Dead and leaning trees are assessed by the arborist and can be taken down while the crew is there.