Tree Service in Villas, FL

Tree Service in Villas tends to start with palms. The community straddles US 41 about six miles south of central Fort Myers, with Page Park and Pine Manor to the north and Whiskey Creek and Cypress Lake to the west. Yards here are generally modest, and palms fit them: cabbage palms, queen palms, pygmy date palms, Christmas palms and the occasional coconut. Fort Myers Tree Service Pros trims, diagnoses and removes those palms, and prunes the shade trees that share the space.

A disease worth knowing about

Lethal bronzing is a fatal palm disease caused by a phytoplasma, spread by sap-feeding insects. UF/IFAS lists Lee County among the 36 Florida counties with confirmed cases, and the palms it attacks include cabbage palm, queen palm, Canary Island date palm, edible date palm, pygmy date palm and coconut palm. It doesn't look dramatic at first. On a palm carrying fruit, the first sign is usually fruit dropping early. Without fruit, the flower stalks turn brown and die. Then discoloration starts on the oldest, lowest fronds and moves upward, and eventually the spear leaf in the center collapses. Once that spear dies, the palm can't be saved.

What to do if you suspect it

UF/IFAS recommends removing palms that show symptoms or test positive right away, because the antibiotic treatment at its label rate won't reverse symptoms once they appear. Nearby palms that look healthy can be tested; those that test negative can receive preventive oxytetracycline injections every three to four months for at least two years. If several palms on your street have died in the past year, mention that when you call. We will look closely at yours and explain the options, including when removal is the responsible choice for the neighbors' palms as well as yours.

Not every brown frond is a disease

Most brown fronds are simply old fronds at the end of their life, or a sign of a nutrient shortage like potassium deficiency, which shows on the oldest leaves first and is common in sandy Florida soils. Over-trimming makes it worse, because a palm pulls nutrients from its older fronds. We trim only dead and hanging fronds and seed stalks, and we never strip a palm into a feather duster.

Who lives here

The 2020 census counted 12,687 Villas residents with a median age of 51.9. About 40.7% of households were people living alone, and QuickFacts lists 2.00 people per household with a 64.2% owner-occupied rate. Plenty of the people who call us live by themselves and simply want the job done safely and the yard left clean. We give a clear written estimate, show up when we say we will, and haul everything away.

Other Villas jobs

• Trimming black olive, oak and mahogany limbs away from roofs
• Removing dead or diseased palms and grinding the stumps
• Clearing branches off the service line to the house
• Storm cleanup after summer squalls

Villas is unincorporated, and Lee County's guide exempts removal of five or fewer trees a year from a single-family lot with a home. Call (239) 236-3651 or send the form for a free estimate. Get a free estimate