Healthy Trees 
Happy People 
 We care for trees because we love our planet - we don't cut them down. We specialize in expert tree pruning, tree care, compost fertilizer, native tree planting, converting lawns to Piedmont Prairies, and more. We’re a local, family-owned company dedicated to healthy trees, thriving ecosystems, and happy people.
 
 We love our planet
This is why we care for trees. We preserve, plant, and promote trees in a manner that attempts to maximize positive benefits for members of all ecosystems. Our Piedmont Prairies help achieve these outcomes as well. Our hope is to help address pressing environmental issues and restore life on Earth. Though we still have much to discover, we know this for certain:
Healthy native trees in abundance create happy people and a more vibrant planet.
 
 Life on Earth is hurting
We’re seeing a decrease in biodiversity, destruction of forests, rise of air pollution, loss of our topsoil, dwindling drinking water, and an increase of CO2 in our atmosphere – just to name a few. Lucky for us, trees are one of Earth’s most powerful tools for creating a healthy planet, so let’s plant new trees and responsibly care for the ones we have.
Articles & Events
 
 Is a Tree With a Hollow Dangerous? How to Know What’s Safe
 
 October 2025 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Eight Legs. Zero Worries. Why You Want Spiders in Your Yard
 
 Tree & Me: Trees Keep Time
 
 What You Need to Know About the Spotted Lanternfly
 
 Not So Scary: 12 Common Spiders That Help Your Yard Thrive
 
 Are Mushrooms Growing on Trees Always Bad?
 
 Get To Know Leaf & Limb: Meet Luke
 
 September 2025 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Get to Know Project Pando: Meet Celia, Assistant Manager at Walnut Creek Wetland Park
 
 Does Your Tree Really Need to Be Cut Down?
 
 Video | Tree Trimming 101: When, Why & How to Prune Safely
 
 Tree Pruning Types: A Graded Guide for Homeowners
 
 Tree Trimming FAQ: Simple Fixes for Common Tree Problems
 
 Get To Know Leaf & Limb: Meet Colin
 
 Tree & Me: You Go, Tree!
 
 The Story of Durham’s Willow Oaks
 
 August 2025 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Video | Compost Tea for Lawns: A Greener Way to Grow
 
 Get To Know Leaf & Limb: Meet Patrick
 
 Compost Tea for Natural Lawn Care
 
 Compost Tea for Lawns: Ernie Earthworm’s Natural Lawn Care Tips
 
 Tree & Me: Holding On
 
 July 2025 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Video | The Root of the Problem: How We’re Killing Trees Without Knowing
 
 Root Awakening: How Construction Projects Can Trouble Your Tree
 
 Get To Know Leaf & Limb: Meet Andrea
 
 Tree & Me: Living in the Vast Embrace of My Trees
 
 June 2025 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Get To Know Project Pando: Meet Caroline
 
 Video | How to Prepare Your Trees for Hurricanes: Tips to Protect Your Home and Property
 
 Weathering a Hurricane: How to Stormproof Your Trees From the Ground Up
 
 Get To Know Leaf & Limb: Meet Katrina
 
 Tree & Me: My Grandmama and the Ancient Oak
 
 May 2025 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Hedging Your Bets
 
 11 Native Shrubs to Plant in Central North Carolina
 
 Get To Know Leaf & Limb: Meet Kelly
 
 April 2025 Treecologist Tribune
 
 How to Make Vermicompost
 
 The Wild Frontier: What Remains of the Great American Grasslands
 
 Get To Know Leaf & Limb: Meet Anna
 
 Ditch Your Laborious Lawn for a Magnificent Meadow or Prairie
 
 March 2025 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Video | What's the Secret Ingredient in Compost Tea? WORM POOP!
 
 Brewing Better Soil: The Benefits of Compost Tea
 
 February 2025 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Video | How to Structurally Prune a Tree For Health, Strength, and Longevity
 
 Safe and Sound: How Pruning Can Make Your Tree Strong
 
 January 2025 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Seeds of Change: 9 Ways to Foster Lasting Environmental Impact
 
 Point of View: 2024 Year in Review at Leaf & Limb
 
 November 2024 Treecologist Tribune
 
 October 2024 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Thickets 101: Collections of Small Trees and Shrubs that Provide Privacy, Erosion Control, and Wildlife Habitats
 
 Opposums are Awesome (and No, They Don't Have Rabies)
 
 September 2024 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Video | Project Pando Needs Your Donations
 
 August Treecologist Tribune
 
 Video | Worried About Big Trees?
 
 Think Your Tree Needs to Be Removed? 6 Reasons You Might Be Wrong
 
 July 2024 Treecologist Tribune
 
 June 2024 Treecologist Tribune
 
 How to Perform Structural Pruning
 
 May 2024 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Video | How to Perform Structural Pruning
 
 Video | How to Perform the 3-Cut Pruning Method
 
 How to Properly Prune Using the 3-Cut Method and The Reduction Cut
 
 April 2024 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Video | Learn How to Save Time and Help Heal Earth in Our New Book
 
 March 2024 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Setting the Stage—A Conversation About Why Change is Necessary
 
 February 2024 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Tree Root Structure
 
 January 2024 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Point of View: 2023 Year in Review at Leaf & Limb
 
 November 2023 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Bats are the Best (and, Unfortunately, They're Endangered)
 
 October 2023 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Video | The Story of A Seed
 
 September 2023 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Video | Meadows, Thickets, and Pocket Forests: Going Beyond the Traditional Landscaping Model
 
 Strength in Numbers: The Basics of a Pocket Forest
 
 Wondering How to Get Rid of Crape Myrtle Bark Scale?
 
 August 2023 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Video | From Seeds to Serenity: The Piedmont Prairie Process
 
 10 Native Flowers and Grasses to Plant in a Central North Carolina Piedmont Prairie
 
 July 2023 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Video | Tree Roots Don't Break Pipes
 
 Do Roots Cause Damage? Debunking 3 Common Myths About Tree Roots
 
 Stop Blaming Tree Roots: 5 Ways to Proactively Prevent Property Damage
 
 June 2023 Treecologist Tribune
 
 10 Native Shrubs to Plant in Central North Carolina
 
 Video | How to Manage Invasive Plants
 
 Managing Invasive Plants
 
 May 2023 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Video | Earth Day is Every Day
 
 Plants Make the Planet Go Round
 
 Spring Scavenger Hunt
 
 March Treecologist Tribune
 
 We Are Safe At All Times: Our Approach to Tree-Climbing Safety
 
 Video | Climbing with Archie: How to Climb a Tree Like an Arborist
 
 Video | Day in the Life
 
 February Treecologist Tribune
 
 Why We Recommend Herbicide for Some Ecological Restoration Projects
 
 Point of View: Behind the Scenes at Leaf & Limb
 
 Video | How Hand Pruning Your Shrubs is Faster, Cheaper, and Healthier than using a Hedge Trimmer!
 
 Checklist: Tools and Supplies for Hand Pruning Your Shrubs
 
 Still Using Hedge Trimmers? Hand Pruning is Better for Your Shrubs
 
 January 2023 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Sapling Stories: Bald Cypress
 
 October 2022 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Friend or Foe? Snakes (Yes, Even Copperheads) Are Important to Our Ecosystem.
 
 Project Pando Needs Your Help! How to Collect Native Tree Seeds
 
 Project Pando: Native Seed Hub
 
 Video | Piedmont Prairies: An Alternative to Grass and Lawns Where Beauty and Life Thrive!
 
 August 2022 Treecologist Tribune
 
 Planting a Piedmont Prairie Helped Change the Way I See the World
 
 Piedmont Prairies: The Process & What to Expect
 
 Video | How to Structurally Prune a Tree for Strength
 
 [Case Study] Before and After: Structural Pruning on an Oak Tree
 
 Video | How to Spot a Dead or Dying Tree
 
 Video | Bigger is Not Always Better! Planting Small Can Lead to Big Benefits.
 
 Bigger is Not Better! 3 Reasons Why You Should Plant Trees When They are Smaller
 
 Video | How Invasives Harm Our Local Ecosystem (And the ONE Thing You Can Do to Help)
 
 How Invasive Trees and Shrubs Harm Our Local Ecosystem and One Way You Can Reverse That Damage
 
 10 Invasive Plants to Watch Out for in Central North Carolina
 
 Spring Scavenger Hunt
 
 Fascinators and Flagella: How to Host a Tea Party for Soil Microbes
 
 Compost Tea Makes Soil Healthy and Trees Happy
 
 Video | Tea for Your Trees
 
 Video | Mulch Volcanoes: Deceptively Deadly
 
 Are Mulch Volcanoes Threatening The Trees in Your Neighborhood?
 
 Sapling Stories: Beryl's Beauties
 
 Video | Sheep, Seeds, and Swales: An Update from Project Pando
 
 6 Reasons Why Planting A Native Tree Benefits the Environment and Our Local Ecosystem
 
 Video | Drop That Rake: Save Time and Money by Leaving Your Leaves
 
 Project Pando: Native Seed Drive 2021
 
 Video | How to Plant a Tree: The Definitive Guide to Proper Planting
 
 10 Simple Steps to a Perfectly Planted Tree or Shrub
 
 Video | 3 Ways City Life Stresses Trees (And What You Can Do to Help)
 
 Why is Tree Care Important? Outside of the Forest, Trees Face Unique Challenges.
 
 Emerald Ash Borers are Killing Trees. A Simple Treatment Can Stop Them.
 
 Business Conservationist of the Year
 
 Video | Did you Know? The Secret to Fertilizing your Trees and Shrubs Without Using Chemicals.
 
 Chemical Fertilizers: 3 Surprising Myths and Why You Should Choose Organic Matter Instead
 
 4 Options for Fertilizing Trees and Shrubs the Cheap, Easy, and Healthy Way
 
 Video | 4 Fundamentals of Tree Care
 
 Not Sure How to Care for your Trees? 4 Simple Steps to Happy, Healthy Trees
 
 [Parody] Video | Introducing Timber: the Only Dating App for Trees
 
 Video | Introducing Archie the Arborist: 5 Amazing Tree Facts
 
 We Show That We Care: The History of Project Pando
 
 How to Spot a Southern Pine Beetle Infestation
 
 Video | How to Plant a Tree: 5 Questions to Ask Before You Pick Up a Shovel
 
 Drop that shovel! 5 Questions to Ask Before Planting
 
 10 Native Trees to Plant in Central North Carolina
 
 Holiday Gift Guide for That Special Tree in Your Life
 
 Measure What Matters - We are B Corp Certified!
 
 Video | Wood Chips: The Secret Ingredient to Healthy Trees
 
 Top 10 Reasons to Choose Wood Chips Over Other Types of Mulch
 
 Healthy Eating Plate for Trees
 
 Video | Welcome to Project Pando
 
 Video | Structure is Strength - How to Make your Trees More Safe Using Pruning.
 
 Are Your Trees Safe? Prune to Make Them Stronger.
 
 How to Select a Safe Branch for a Tree Swing
 
 Your Dirt is Hungry
 
 Video | Soil is Alive
 
 Recipe: Savory Soil Casserole
 
 How Trees Can Heal Earth & What We Can Do to Help
 
 Earth Day Bingo
 
 Video | How Trees Can Save the Earth
 
 Spring Tree Care Checklist
 
 Spring Scavenger Hunt
 
 Don't Make a Deadly Mistake: Top 10 Questions to Consider Before Pruning
 
 Video | Planning to Prune? Use this simple framework and avoid deadly mistakes.
 
 Video | Rooted by Our Purpose: A New Direction at Leaf & Limb
 
 Why Dead Wood is Good Wood
 
 Video | Want More Birds in your Backyard? Plant These Native Trees.
 
 Best Native Trees for Butterflies
 
 Fall & Winter Tree Care Checklist
 
 Video | Fall Tree Care Checklist: Leave your Leaves, Plant New Trees, and Other Important Tasks
 
 Top 10 Most Surprising Benefits of Trees
 
 How I Learned to Love My Trees
 
 Video | Trees are Critical to Our Future
 
 Think Your Tree is Dead? Look a Little Closer
 
 How to Spot a Dead or Dying Tree
 
 Video | How to Spot the Warning Signs: Dead, Dying or Hazardous Trees
 
 Right Tree, Right Place: What to Plant and Where to Plant it
 
 Video | How To: Choosing the Right Tree for Any Location
 
 Our Favorite Tree Recommendations for Tricky Areas
 
 Using Fertilizer? Think Twice Before You Do.
 
 The #1 Reason Most Soil Tests Don't Work
 
 Friend or Foe: When to Take Action Against Pests
 
 The Insect Apocalypse is Here. How Can You Help?
 
 16 Fascinating Facts About Fungi
 
 Mycorrhizal Fungi: The Unsung Heroes of Tree Care
 
 Case Study: Watch How Soil Improvement Turned this Tree from Sickly to Stately
 
 From Dead Dirt to Healthy Soil in 7 Simple Steps
 
 6 Pruning Mistakes to Avoid
 
 How to Install and Enjoy Your Rain Gauge
 
 Help Save the Monarch Butterflies!
 
 4 Fascinating Facts About Mistletoe
 
 Proper Care for Newly Planted Trees
 
 8 Ways to Accidentally Kill Your Tree When Planting
 
 Drop that Rake! Why Leaving the Leaves is Vital to Your Trees' Health
 
 Save Time This Fall: Leave Your Leaves
 
 Video | How To: The Fundamentals Of Watering
 
 Video | The Fundamentals of Mulch: Proper Care, Installation, and Selection
 
 Too Many Choices: Which Mulch or Weed Barrier Should I Choose?
 
 When Good Mulch Goes Bad
 
 How To: The Fundamentals of Mulch Installation
 
 Five Ways to Spot a Thirsty Tree or Shrub
 
 Soaker Hoses, Irrigation Systems, and Treegators, Oh My!
 
 Drought Resistant Trees
 
 How To: The Fundamentals of Watering
 
 The Joy of Planting Native Trees in Durham, North Carolina
 
 Brightening Up Neighborhoods Across Durham
 
 Changing lives one seed at a time in Durham
 
 Soil Decompaction - An Essential for Good Tree Health
 
 Emerald Ash Borer is in NC!
 
 Cabling & Bracing - Options for Making Your Tree Safer
 
 Tree Care for Crape Myrtles
 
 How to Prevent Tree Damage
 
 Help! My Tree Has a Disease!
 
 Dragon’s Blood Tree
 
 Deep Root Fertilization: Myths & The Truth
 
 The Dangerous Truth About Ghost Insurance Policies
 
 Happy Trees Begin With Proper Planting
 
 Trees & Shrubs Need Check-Ups Too!
 
 How To Protect Your Trees from a Lightning Strike
 
 Mulching: A Cheap, Easy Way to Increase the Health of Your Trees!
 
 Crape Myrtles: A Tale of Love, Murder, and Proper Pruning
 
 The World's Oldest Trees
 
 Help! Insects are Attacking my Trees & Shrubs!
 
 Tree Care: Save Money and Increase Your Property Value
 
 Root Collar Excavation is Critical to Your Tree's Survival!
 
 Tree Risk Assessment: The Key to Safer Trees & Peace of Mind!
 
 10 Tips on How to Choose the Right Tree Service and Avoid Scams
 
 Happy Trees Grow From Healthy Soil
 
 TCIA Accreditation: Empowering You With Confidence
 
 What is Tree Care?
 
 Mulch Volcanoes: the Mt. St. Helens of Tree Problems
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 