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Tree Service in Bedford, NH
Along ten named Bedford brooks, a dead or unsafe tree may come out of the 50-foot buffer only with its stump and roots left in the ground, and every other tree cut there counts as a separate violation (Stream Protection Ordinance). 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
- Bedford Center to the Merrimack River
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Tree work in Bedford
Tree jobs on Bedford's brooks, wetlands and wooded lots
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 which job it is?
(978) 698-4783Tell us whether the tree is near a brook, a wetland or the road, and whether you're in Bedford Center. Each one changes what can be cut and what has to stay.
Rules and permits
Who decides about trees in Bedford
Bedford has no general permit for cutting a tree on your own land that we could find, but four sets of rules reach into private yards: the 2025 Stream Protection Ordinance, the wetland setbacks, the Bedford Center Historic District and the town right-of-way. The Conservation Commission reviews encroachments on wetland setbacks and stream buffers, the Planning Board issues conditional use permits, and the Historic District Commission rules on protected trees in Bedford Center.
- Stream buffers
- 50 ft on 10 named brooks; dead, diseased or unsafe trees only, stumps left in place
- Wetlands
- 50-ft setback for structures; cutting in forested wetlands with roots and stumps undisturbed
- Historic District
- Front-yard trees 15 in. and up are protected in Bedford Center
- Right-of-way
- No trees or plantings; any work needs a Right-of-Way Opening Permit (Public Works, 603-472-3070)
- Burning
- Daily permit from the Fire Department or the state online system
- Transfer station brush
- Free for residents; limbs up to 5 in. and 4 ft; no trees or stumps
The stream buffers. Approved on March 11, 2025, the Stream Protection Ordinance (Zoning Article XV, §§275-101 to 275-108) draws a 50-foot buffer from the ordinary high-water mark of Baboosic, Bog, Bowman, McQuade, McQuesten, Patten, Pointer Club, Pulpit, Riddle and Sebbins brooks. Inside it you may remove dead, diseased or unsafe trees as long as stumps, roots, stones and duff stay where they are, keep a pervious path or view corridor up to 6 feet wide, trim ground cover no lower than 3 feet, maintain an existing lawn without enlarging it and control invasive plants. No other tree or vegetation removal is allowed, and each tree taken out counts as its own violation. Bank stabilization and crossings need a Planning Board Conditional Use Permit after the Conservation Commission comments. The same ordinance notes that the state's 250-foot shoreland zone under RSA 483-B applies to Sebbins Pond, Baboosic Brook and the Merrimack River (Stream Protection Ordinance). On those shorelands, state law scores the first 50 feet by tree size and keeps stumps in the ground unless NHDES approves removal (RSA 483-B:9).
Wetlands. Every Bedford wetland carries a 50-foot setback for structures. The town's Wetlands page summarizes state rule Env-Wt 309.02(a): cutting, trees included, is allowed in wet meadows and forested wetlands if the roots and stumps are left undisturbed and the ground is frozen or dry enough not to rut, though not in bogs, prime wetlands, marshes and similar areas. Nearly all wetland work in New Hampshire also needs an NHDES permit, and the town recommends a certified wetland scientist (Bedford Wetlands). That makes winter, on frozen ground, the usual window for taking a tree out of a wooded wetland. The Conservation Commission, set up in 1965, meets on the fourth Tuesday at 7 p.m. at BCTV, 10 Meetinghouse Road (Conservation Commission).
Bedford Center Historic District. Zoning §275-49B requires a certificate of approval for grading, excavation and removal of stone walls, fences and trees in the district (Article VII). The HDC page says a certificate is likely needed for "removing a protected tree," one over 15 inches in diameter, and for grading of 2 feet or more or stone wall work; the Historic District layer of the town's GIS Parcel Viewer shows whether you're inside (Historic District Commission). The HDC regulations posted as amended September 1, 2026 define a protected tree as one 15 inches or more in diameter at 4 feet above grade, in a front yard. Dead or invasive trees, healthy trees under 15 inches and any side- or rear-yard tree are exempt; staff can approve removing one dying, diseased or hazardous front-yard tree on an arborist's finding; removing more than one live protected tree goes to the full commission (HDC regulations). The posted text is labeled a draft, so confirm with the HDC, which meets the first Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. and offers non-binding pre-applications.
The town right-of-way. Bedford's right-of-way is "often 50 feet wide and 25 feet from the center of the road," usually reaching 10 to 15 feet past the pavement edge. Plantings, trees, bark mulch, rocks, stone walls, fences and irrigation aren't permitted in it, and any work there requires a Right-of-Way Opening Permit from Public Works, 603-472-3070 (Town's Right-of-Way). The Highway Division cuts roadside brush in spring, summer and fall, and service requests go through the DPW request form or Town Offices at 603-472-5242 (Highway Division).
Scenic roads. Bedford's land development regulations require development along or off a designated scenic road to comply fully with RSA 231:157 (LDCR, June 15, 2026). We didn't find the town's list of designated roads; ask the town if yours is one.
Digging out roots. State law counts "tree and root removal" as excavation (RSA 374:48); notice goes to Dig Safe at least 72 hours ahead, not counting weekends and legal holidays, with the area white-marked, and 811 is free (Dig Safe). Ask the tree company how it handles a ticket on your job.
Last verified November 2026. Fees, restrictions and deadlines on this page are due for re-checking by March 2027. New England Tree Service is a referral service. We don't cut trees, pull permits or appear before town boards.
Brush, burning and town woods
Getting rid of the wood in Bedford
The transfer station. Bedford's Transfer Station at 77 Chubbuck Road (603-472-4563) is for residents with a sticker and is open Tuesday 7 to 5, Wednesday and Friday 8:30 to 5, Thursday 8:30 to 7 and Saturday 6:30 to 3 (Transfer Station). Under the rules and rates effective September 30, 2026, brush and leaves are free for residents and $110 a ton for commercial loads, tree limbs can't exceed 5 inches in diameter or 4 feet in length, and trees and stumps are not accepted (Rules and Rates). Trash pickup in Bedford is private, and we found no town curbside yard waste collection (NHES community profile), so trunk wood and stumps leave with the tree company or stay on the property.
Burning a brush pile. Daily permits "can be obtained at the Bedford Fire Department," and the town sends online applicants to the state Division of Forests and Lands system at nh.burnsafeamerica.com. A daily permit runs from 5 p.m. to midnight on the day it's issued. Category II and III fires burn only between 5 p.m. and 9 a.m. unless it is actually raining, and a Category III permit, for fires over 4 feet across such as a big brush pile, can be issued for up to seven days. No permit is needed with at least an inch of snow for 100 feet around the burn area, and someone who doesn't own the land needs the owner's written permission (Burning Permits). The Fire Department is at 55 Constitution Drive, 603-472-3219 (Severe Weather Safety). State rules limit what goes on the fire to untreated wood and brush no more than 5 inches in diameter (NH fire permits).
Town woods. Bedford's conservation land includes the Pulpit Rock forest, which has a 2020 forest management plan, and the Conservation Commission keeps a 2024 Conservation Atlas and a 2009 Open Space Plan (Conservation Commission).
Lots and ground. About 85% of Bedford's 8,161 housing units are single-family homes, served by a mix of septic and sewer (Bedford town profile). In the Pines Area, lots are small and sit on rapidly percolating sand (water and sewer memo). Tell the tree company where the septic system and leach field are before a crane, a loader or a stump grinder rolls across the yard.
Power lines
Bedford trees and Eversource lines
Bedford's town profile lists Eversource as the electric company (Bedford town profile), and Eversource's Bedford Area Work Center is at 12 Bellemore Drive (Eversource locations). Eversource keeps limbs out of a zone 8 feet to the side, 10 feet below and 15 feet above its wires, trimming on a four-to-five-year cycle. Work over the house or driveway beyond that falls to the homeowner's contractor; Eversource will temporarily remove the pole-to-house wires so the contractor can work safely, may take off limbs rubbing the service wires at no charge, and leaves the wood with the owner. On a designated scenic road it won't cut trees without planning board approval and a hearing (Eversource NH tree FAQ). Stay at least 10 feet from any line and assume it's live (NH Department of Energy).
FAQ
Bedford tree questions
A dead tree is right beside Baboosic Brook. Can it come down?
Yes. Bedford's Stream Protection Ordinance allows removing dead, diseased or unsafe trees in the 50-foot buffer, but the stump, roots, stones and duff have to stay in place. Grinding the stump there isn't on the list of allowed activities.
I live in Bedford Center. Do I need approval to take down a tree?
Possibly. In the Historic District, a front-yard tree 15 inches or more in diameter at 4 feet is protected. The posted HDC regulations exempt dead or invasive trees, smaller trees and side- or rear-yard trees, let staff approve one hazardous front-yard tree with an arborist's finding, and send removal of more than one live protected tree to the full commission.
Will the transfer station take the wood from my tree job?
Brush is free for residents with a sticker, but limbs can't be more than 5 inches in diameter or 4 feet long, and trees and stumps are not accepted under the rules effective September 30, 2026.
How do I get a permit to burn a brush pile?
Daily permits come from the Bedford Fire Department at 55 Constitution Drive (603-472-3219), and the town points online applicants to the state's system at nh.burnsafeamerica.com. Larger fires burn only from 5 p.m. to 9 a.m. unless it's raining, and no permit is needed with at least an inch of snow for 100 feet around the burn area.
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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