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Tree Service in Billerica, MA
Billerica's Parks & Trees crews cut down trees only on town property, and the same office can confirm whether a tree is the town's or yours. Call (978) 698-4783 or use the form. A person reads every request and replies with what happens next.
- Free for homeowners
- Insurance checked first
- Pinehurst to North Billerica
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Tree work in Billerica
The tree jobs Billerica homeowners call about
Tree Removal
Dead, dying, leaning or simply unwanted trees, including the tight ones that have to come down in sections over a roof.
Pruning & Trimming
Deadwood out, limbs lifted off the roof and the service wire, and crowns thinned so the tree stands up to wind and snow.
Stump Grinding
Grinding the stump below grade so the spot can be seeded, planted or paved, with the chips hauled off or left as mulch.
Storm Damage & Emergency Work
Trees and big limbs on the house, the car or the driveway after wind, ice or a nor'easter, once the utility has made any wires safe.
Not sure what the tree needs?
(978) 698-4783Tell us whether it is near the road, a wire or wet ground, and we'll help you sort out who has a say before work starts.
Rules and permits
Who decides about trees in Billerica
In Billerica, a tree on town property is the Parks & Trees Division's job, and a tree on your side of the line is yours to deal with; the division will confirm which is which (town FAQ). Two extra layers can apply: a permit hearing if the tree is on Concord Road or Dudley Road, and the Conservation Commission if it is near a wetland.
- Town trees
- Parks & Trees Division, DPW, 250 River Street Ext., 978-671-1313, Option 5 (Parks & Trees)
- Scenic roads
- Concord Road and Dudley Road; Planning Board permit, $100 application fee plus notice costs
- Wetland strip
- 50 ft undisturbed on previously undeveloped lots; 25 ft on lots developed by June 27, 2003
- Burning brush
- January 15 to May 1, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., fire department permit required
- Yard waste
- Curbside, 4 weeks in spring and 6 in fall; no plastic bags
Public shade trees. Parks & Trees removes dead trees on town property and those that are a danger to the public, and trims brush along town roads (Parks & Trees). The 2024 open space plan names the division as the manager of the town's public shade trees (2024 OSRP), and the Town Manager told the Select Board in 2024 that Billerica has a tree warden, though not an arborist (Select Board minutes). Under state law, only the tree warden or a deputy may cut a tree in the public way or on its edge, even when the land beneath is yours, unless the tree warden gives written permission, and taking one down requires an advertised public hearing (M.G.L. c.87 §3). We found no separate town tree bylaw for private property.
Concord Road and Dudley Road. These are Billerica's two designated scenic roads. The Planning Board's Scenic Road Rules, adopted in 2012, define a tree as one with a trunk four inches or more in diameter a foot above the ground and include limbs over four inches in cutting. An application (Form S-R) goes to the Planning Board with a certified list of abutters within 100 feet, a map, a statement of the work and color photos. The trees to be cut are posted with the hearing details, the request is sent to the Tree Warden, police, fire, the Conservation and Historical Commissions and others for comment, and the hearing is held within 30 days of filing after two weeks of newspaper notice. A permit takes at least four of the seven Planning Board votes, and the fee is $100 plus advertising, notice and review costs. Where the public shade tree law also applies, the scenic road hearing is held together with the Tree Warden's. Taking down more than 15 linear feet of stone wall of the size the rules set out needs a permit too (Scenic Road Rules).
Wetlands. Billerica's own Wetlands Protection By-Law, Article XXII, covers resource areas including vernal pools, a 100-foot buffer zone and a 200-foot riverfront area. It requires a permit before anyone alters those areas, defines altering to include cutting vegetation in a wetland resource area, and says exceptions in the state act apply only where the by-law lists them (Wetlands Protection By-Law). The town's wetland regulations protect buffer zones by keeping a continuous cover of native vegetation: a strip at least 50 feet wide left undisturbed on previously undeveloped lots, at least 25 feet on lots developed as of June 27, 2003, and a 25-foot strip from the bank along rivers. The Category 1 filing fee, $40 per activity, covers work on a single-family lot (Wetland Protection Regulations).
Wires and digging. National Grid, which serves Billerica (DPU franchise list), trims around primary lines on a cycle of about five to seven years but not the service line from the pole to your house; it will disconnect that line for your tree company with at least five days' notice at 1-800-322-3223 (vegetation management). State law requires notice to Dig Safe at least 72 hours, not counting weekends and legal holidays, before any excavation (M.G.L. c.82 §40A); ask the tree company whether its job calls for a ticket.
Last verified November 2026. Fees, restrictions and deadlines on this page are due for re-checking by December 2026. New England Tree Service is a referral service. We don't cut trees, request hearings or file with the conservation commission.
Brush, wood and woods
What happens to the brush, and Billerica's forests
Curbside yard waste. Waste Management picks up yard waste on your regular trash day for four weeks in spring and six in fall, in biodegradable paper yard waste bags or clearly labeled barrels; yard waste in plastic bags isn't collected (Yard Waste). The fall 2026 collection runs October 26 through December 4 and takes grass, leaves, small branches and brush, with no dirt, stones or concrete and no container or bag over 50 pounds (fall collection notice). The town's pages don't mention a brush drop-off or stump disposal, so the wood from a removal is usually something to settle with the tree company. Questions go to the Solid Waste & Recycling Coordinator at 978-671-1313, Option 2 (Trash & Recycling).
Burning. Billerica isn't one of the communities that ban open burning. Brush and forestry debris can be burned from January 15 to May 1, between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., with a permit from the local fire department, at least 75 feet from any dwelling; leaves, grass and stumps can't be burned (open burning rules).
The woods around town. The state counts the Warren H. Manning State Forest at 201 acres, with a spray deck for summer use (DCR planning unit). It stands on land given by the landscape designer Warren Henry Manning, off Chelmsford Road (Route 129) in northern Billerica, with a 1.35-mile trail loop (town brochure). The Conservation Commission's Rangeway Town Forest is mostly pine (town brochure). The 2024 open space plan sees few large forest expanses outside Warren Manning and finds the rest of the town's wooded land highly fragmented, with hardwoods the largest share of forest cover, and lists invasive plants such as oriental bittersweet, Japanese knotweed and multiflora rose (2024 OSRP).
Planting back. The town's third annual Arbor Day giveaway on April 25, 2026 offered 400 red maple seedlings, one per Billerica household (seedling flyer).
FAQ
Billerica tree questions
Will Billerica take down a tree in front of my house?
Only if it stands on town property. The Parks and Trees Division doesn't cut trees on private land, but it can verify who owns a tree: call 978-671-1313, Option 5, and give your name, phone number, the location and a description of the tree.
Which roads in Billerica are scenic roads?
Two: Concord Road, designated in 1974, and Dudley Road, designated in 1977. On those roads the Planning Board's rules count any tree with a trunk at least four inches across, measured a foot off the ground, and cutting a limb over four inches is treated as cutting too.
How much wooded buffer does Billerica expect me to keep near a wetland?
Billerica's wetland regulations call for an undisturbed strip of natural vegetation at least 50 feet wide on lots that were undeveloped, and a strip of natural vegetation at least 25 feet wide on lots already developed by June 27, 2003, with more on steep slopes. Cutting vegetation in a wetland resource area counts as altering it under the town bylaw, so talk to the Conservation Commission before anything is cut.
Will curbside pickup take the branches from a tree job?
Waste Management collects yard waste for four weeks in spring and six weeks in fall, including small branches and brush, in paper yard waste bags or labeled barrels of up to 50 pounds each. Plastic bags are left behind, and the town doesn't list a drop-off site for larger wood, so agree with the tree company on who hauls it.
What does it cost me to use New England Tree Service?
Nothing. The request and the referral are free; the tree company prices the work.
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