A tree can be otherwise sound with just one weak point worth reinforcing, and that is exactly the gap Stratford Tree Service fills with tree cabling and bracing across Stratford and the surrounding area. Every job carries insurance, and we tell you plainly whether hardware will actually help before a dollar figure ever comes up.
Call (226) 602-0607.
Cabling and bracing solve the same underlying problem in two different ways: a tree that is basically sound but has one weak point worth backing up. A cable is flexible steel strung high in the canopy, keeping two stems from drifting further apart every time the wind picks up.
A brace works differently: a threaded rod runs straight through a split, physically clamping the two halves together against the load. Neither hardware option actually fixes what caused the weakness in the first place. What tree cabling and bracing does is buy a tree more safe years than it would otherwise get before coming down.
The most common candidate is an older shade tree with a low double or triple trunk, common on the mature streets near the downtown core and around Dufferin Park, where big trees have had sixty or more years to develop a divided form.
Bark trapped inside that division means the two stems were never really fused together in the first place. Each year adds weight and takes the joint a little closer to failing, and it is usually a heavy ice load that finally splits it open.
Placement matters: a cable sits about two thirds up from the fork toward the branch tips, not right at the union itself. That spot controls sway without dumping the entire strain onto a single anchor.
A properly installed cable still lets the tree flex; it is not meant to lock everything rigid. Take away all movement and the tree never builds the strength it would otherwise develop naturally, so the real goal is capping the extremes rather than stopping motion altogether.
Usually, yes. Pairing tree cabling and bracing with a canopy reduction tends to get better results, simply because a lighter crown means less strain landing on the hardware afterward.
Installing cable hardware on its own often means the steel is supporting weight that a saw could have removed for less money. We usually recommend doing tree cabling and bracing together with a reduction and will explain the cost of each part separately.
Hardware is not always the answer, and we would rather point that out upfront than sell tree cabling and bracing that will not actually help:
- Rot low in the trunk is not something a cable up in the crown can touch, so hardware alone will not fix it - Once a fork has opened up substantially, steel is usually too late to make much difference - On a young tree, a couple of pruning cuts to correct the fork costs less and holds up longer than any cable - A tree that is failing generally is usually better off coming down than being propped up
A large tree with a fork or a lean that you keep half an eye on is worth a proper look. Stratford Tree Service fits tree cabling and bracing across Stratford and the surrounding area, and the assessment costs nothing. See the home page for the full list of what we do.
Call (226) 602-0607.
A property usually needs more than one kind of tree work sooner or later. Below is the rest of what we offer.
Homes and businesses across Stratford and the surrounding area rely on Stratford Tree Service for tree trimming and pruning, insured on every job and sized to handle any tree. A tree kept on a regular tree trimming and pruning schedule costs less to maintain over its life and is far less likely to lose a limb when a storm rolls through.
View Tree Trimming and Pruning
Dead, broken and hanging branches come down safely with Stratford Tree Service, working across Stratford and the surrounding townships. Insurance covers every job, whether it is one branch or a tree that has lost most of its crown to dieback.
View Dead Branch Removal
When a storm brings a tree down, Stratford Tree Service handles emergency storm damage cleanup across Stratford and the surrounding area, day or night when the situation calls for it. Every job is insured. A tree touching a hydro line is the power company's problem first, so call them before you call us.
View Emergency Storm Damage Cleanup
Stratford Tree Service provides tree removal for trees of any size across Stratford and the surrounding area. Every tree removal job we take on is fully insured, and we handle difficult access on the older, tighter lots near downtown as readily as an open backyard. You get that quote in writing before a single cut is made.
View Tree Removal
Mature trees across Stratford and the surrounding area get crown thinning and canopy reduction from Stratford Tree Service, insured on every job. We plan each visit around what keeps the tree healthy for years, not just what solves today's complaint, and you get that plan in writing before we cut anything.
View Crown Thinning and Canopy Reduction
Left-behind stumps come out with Stratford Tree Service's stump grinding and removal, offered across Stratford and the surrounding area. All of our work carries insurance, and grinding is quoted apart from any tree removal, so grinding the stump stays entirely your call.
View Stump Grinding and RemovalGive us a sense of what is going on with the tree and roughly your location, and we will get a visit scheduled. What you get back is a written price laying out our approach to the work, where the cut material ends up, and anything left out of the number.
Knowing the species and a rough height lets us quote tree trimming or tree removal more accurately, and your street matters just as much, because how easily equipment can reach the tree changes the cost more than its size does. Note what the tree is positioned over, and flag the urgent box if storm damage is why you are writing in. Realistically, a working phone number or email is the only field we genuinely cannot skip. Prefer to talk it through instead? Call (226) 602-0607 directly.
