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Tree Service in Salem, NH
Salem keeps an undisturbed natural buffer at least 20 feet wide around every wetland, yet its ordinance still lets fallen, dead, diseased, unsafe or NH-listed invasive trees come out of it (Salem wetlands 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
- Canobie Lake to the Spicket River
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Tree work in Salem
Tree jobs around Salem's lakes, ponds and wetlands
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 if the tree is dead or dying and how far it stands from water. In Salem, both decide which rules apply.
Rules and permits
Who decides about trees in Salem
Salem's town site has no tree warden or forestry page that we could find (site map). Public Works keeps the roads and intersections clear, while trees near water come under the town's wetland ordinance, the Planning Board and the Conservation Commission, with NHDES holding the state wetland and shoreland permits.
- Trees down in the road
- Public Works, 603-890-2150; after hours, Fire business line 603-890-2200
- Wetland buffer
- At least 20 ft, undisturbed; dead, unsafe or invasive trees may come out
- Prime wetlands
- 100-ft undisturbed buffer
- Near lakes and the Spicket River
- Removing trees or brush within 250 ft may need a permit
- Burning
- Permit required; 5 p.m. to midnight, out by midnight
Public Works and the roads. The Streets division lists "Brush clearing - keeping all intersections clear and safe" among its jobs. Trees or limbs down in the road are reported to Public Works at 603-890-2150, weekdays 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. with voicemail around the clock, and after-hours emergencies go to the Fire Department business line at 603-890-2200 (Streets). Other problems can go in through Report a Concern. Zoning also bars any tree, shrub or other growth that blocks the view enough to endanger traffic (Salem zoning), which is worth remembering for a hedge or low limbs at the end of a driveway.
The wetland buffer and its exception. Section 490-706E calls for an undisturbed natural buffer at least 20 feet wide around every wetland, a 100-foot undisturbed buffer around designated prime wetlands, and no structure within 40 feet of a wetland. The same section says "Fallen, dead, diseased, unsafe or New Hampshire identified invasive trees and vegetation may be removed" (§490-706E), which gives a hazard tree in the buffer a path out that a healthy one doesn't have. The Conservation Commission's brochure, revised in March 2024, lists removing trees or vegetation from wetlands or buffers, and dumping leaves, branches or yard waste there, as prohibited or discouraged. It says the Planning Board approves wetland buffer impact applications and that NHDES has jurisdiction under the state wetland and shoreland laws (wetland and shoreland brochure).
Lake lots. The same brochure says that under state and local laws, permits may be required to "Remove trees or brush within 250 feet of the water's edge", and names the waters covered by the state shoreland law in Salem: Captains Pond, Canobie Lake, World's End Pond, Arlington Pond, Millville Pond, Shadow Lake and the Spicket River. Under that law, the first 50 feet from the water is a buffer scored in 25-by-50-foot segments that must keep at least 25 points of trees and shrubs; dead, diseased or unsafe trees aren't scored, and stumps stay in the ground unless NHDES approves removing them (RSA 483-B:9). NHDES runs an Inspector of the Day line at (603) 271-2147 (NHDES protected shoreland).
Scenic roads. We found no designated scenic roads on Salem's official pages. Where a New Hampshire town designates one, road and utility crews need the planning board's written consent after a hearing before cutting trees 15 inches or more around at 4 feet up, though owners' work on their own land is generally unaffected (RSA 231:158).
Wires. The town's community power page says Salem customers "will continue to be customers of Liberty for the delivery of their electricity" (Salem community power). Liberty trims on a four-to-five-year cycle to 15 feet above, 10 feet below and 8 feet to the side, and it says "Major work, such as tree removal, must be performed by you or your contractor," with service disconnected for the job. Its Forestry Department consults on work outside the cycle; Customer Care is 1-800-833-4200, and downed wires go to 1-855-349-9455 (Liberty vegetation maintenance).
Grinding and roots. New Hampshire counts "tree and root removal" as excavation, and digging within 100 feet of an underground facility needs Dig Safe notice at least 72 hours ahead, weekends and legal holidays excluded (RSA 374:48 and 374:51). A ticket is free through 811 (Dig Safe); settle with the tree company who files it.
Last verified November 2026. Fees, restrictions and deadlines on this page are due for re-checking by October 2027. New England Tree Service is a referral service. We don't cut trees, issue burn permits or file wetland applications.
Brush, burning and the Town Forest
What to do with the brush in Salem
The Transfer Station. At 101–109 Shannon Road (Tuesday and Thursday to Saturday 7 a.m. to 2:45 p.m., Wednesday 7 a.m. to 6:45 p.m.), brush "less than 4" in diameter" goes to its own pile, with leaves and grass to a separate one. The station is for residents: "Businesses must make arrangements with private trash/refuse haulers." The resident permit costs $60, runs October 1 to September 30 and isn't prorated; residents 65 and older get one free, as do 100% permanently and totally disabled veterans (Transfer Station). The page says nothing about stumps or logs, and we found no curbside yard waste or storm debris pickup, so wood from a removal leaves with the tree company or gets chipped on site.
Burning. The town's FAQ says a burn permit comes from any of Salem's three fire stations or online through the state Division of Forests and Lands. "Only clean wood can be burned - No construction debris, no trash, no leaves, no painted wood, no rubber." The permit holder must be the landowner, or have written permission, and be 18 or older; fires sit at least 50 feet from buildings, decks and sheds; and burning is allowed from 5 p.m. to midnight, with the fire fully out by midnight. Call 603-685-6420 after 4:30 p.m. to learn whether burning is authorized that day (Can I burn brush in Salem?). The Fire Department's page links an online burn permit request (Salem Fire). State rules cap brush and wood at 5 inches in diameter (NH fire permits).
A Town Forest under pressure. The 347-acre Salem Town Forest at 54 Shadow Lake Road is overseen by the Conservation Commission; tree tapping and hunting stands need authorization, and "No metallic, ceramic, or other object may be inserted into a tree" (Town Forest). Its management plan, updated in 2018, describes a forest of mainly red oak, black oak and white pine, harvested in 1994 and 2008. As of that update, the plan said the forest was "currently being impacted" by emerald ash borer and could wipe out its ash, including the black ash in the bogs, and hemlock woolly adelgid threatened its hemlock. The plan adds that Dutch elm disease has kept elms from maturing and that Strumella canker has turned up on some red and black oaks (Town Forest Management Plan, 2018). An ash or hemlock in decline on a Salem lot fits that picture; say so in your request.
A mostly wooded town. Forest is Salem's main land use, 2,808.5 acres or 38.6% of the town, according to the 2026 Open Space Master Plan, which recommends "shrub and tree buffers to waterways" (2026 Open Space Master Plan). Across southern New Hampshire, the 2024 forest health update found beech leaf disease in nearly every town (2024 NH forest health update).
FAQ
Salem tree questions
A dead tree stands in the wetland buffer. Can it come down?
Salem's ordinance keeps a natural buffer at least 20 feet wide around every wetland undisturbed, but it expressly allows fallen, dead, diseased, unsafe or NH-listed invasive trees to be removed. Healthy trees are another matter: the Conservation Commission lists removing vegetation from wetlands and buffers as prohibited or discouraged, and buffer impact applications go to the Planning Board.
We live on Canobie Lake. Does that change tree work?
Yes. The Conservation Commission's brochure says permits may be required under state and local laws to remove trees or brush within 250 feet of the water's edge, and it names Canobie Lake, World's End Pond, Captains Pond, Arlington Pond, Millville Pond, Shadow Lake and the Spicket River. NHDES answers shoreland questions at (603) 271-2147.
What hours can I burn brush in Salem?
With a permit, burning runs from 5 p.m. to midnight and the fire must be fully out by midnight. Call 603-685-6420 after 4:30 p.m. to find out whether burning is authorized that day, and keep the fire at least 50 feet from buildings, decks and sheds.
Can my tree company drop the brush at the Transfer Station?
The Transfer Station serves residents only, and the town says businesses must make arrangements with private haulers. A resident with the $60 permit can bring brush under 4 inches in diameter to the brush pile.
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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