Highton Hedge Pruning & Trimming
Hedge trimming, shaping and hard reductions in Highton — privacy screens up to 10 m, formal hedges, every clipping taken away.
- Free quotes
- Fully qualified & insured
- 16+ years
Hedge pruning and trimming in Highton, done properly
Most hedge trouble in Highton is size: the pittosporum screen that was 2 m when it went in is 7 m now and eating the path. We bring it back — in one cut if the species allows, in stages if it does not — and tell you honestly which it will be before we start.
The nearest suburbs we also cover are Wandana Heights (2 km), Belmont (2 km), Newtown (2 km), so a job in Highton is often paired with one next door.
A reduction is agreed before it starts: how tall, how wide, how much light you want through. We cut to that, shape the result, and warn you if the species will look bare for a season before it fills — lilly pilly and photinia bounce back fast; conifers do not regrow from bare wood at all.
For a maintenance trim we set string lines on anything formal, cut the faces flat with a slight batter so the bottom keeps its leaves, level the top, and collect the clippings on sheets as we go. Tall screens are done from platforms and ladders with long-reach hedge trimmers, and the chipper deals with the pile on the street.
Hedge Pruning & Trimming in Highton — what we do
Tall privacy hedges
Screens and boundary hedges up to 10 m, from platforms.
Formal hedges
String-lined faces, level tops, crisp corners.
Hard reductions
Overgrown hedges brought back to a workable size.
Clippings removed
Chipped and taken away; nothing left on the drive.
A tip from Api
Do not cut a hedge hard in a Highton heatwave: the freshly exposed inner foliage scorches and takes a season to recover. Late winter or early autumn is the time for the big cuts.
The full service pages: Hedge Trimming and Green Waste Removal — every one available in Highton.
Guides from Api: Hedge trimming contracts: what a regular hedge maintenance plan covers in Melbourne · Emergency tree removal in Melbourne: what to do first and how fast help comes
Do you need a permit to remove a tree in Highton?
The rule that applies to a tree in a Highton garden is Clause 52.37 of the Greater Geelong Planning Scheme — here is what it says.
Greater Geelong is one of the councils without a private-tree local law: when it reviewed tree protection on private land in 2024 its officers recommended strengthening the planning scheme and asking the state for a state-wide approach rather than a local law or a significant-tree overlay.
That state-wide approach arrived in September 2025 as Clause 52.37. The council publishes its own guide: a canopy tree is more than 5 m tall with a trunk over 0.5 m around at 1.4 m and a canopy of at least 4 m; a permit is needed to remove one anywhere on a vacant residential lot, or within 6 m of the narrowest street frontage or 4.5 m of the rear boundary where a house already stands. Council officers may assess the application only against the clause’s own purpose and decision guidelines, and a replacement tree — at least 6 m tall and 4 m wide at maturity — is the usual condition.
Vegetation and heritage overlays on the title apply on top, especially along the Barwon and the coast.
Source: City of Greater Geelong — trees on private property. Read 13 September 2026; councils change their local laws, so Api checks the current rule when he quotes.
Across Victoria since 15 September 2025
Clause 52.37 Canopy Trees
A canopy tree is a tree more than 5 m tall, with a trunk circumference over 0.5 m at 1.4 m above the ground and a canopy at least 4 m across. In a residential zone a planning permit is needed to remove, destroy or lop one in a residential zone if the lot is vacant, or, where there is an existing house, if any part of the trunk is within 6 m of the narrowest street frontage or 4.5 m of the rear boundary.
Dead trees, emergency and safety works, maintenance pruning and listed weed species are exempt; councils usually condition a permit on planting a replacement canopy tree, and most decide these through VicSmart in about ten business days.
What this means for you: tell Api where the tree sits on the block and he will tell you whether a permit is needed before anything is cut — and where one is, we can prepare the arborist assessment the application needs.
Hedge trimming jobs by Api and the crew
Real jobs, real photos — Api, the crew and the truck, across the Geelong region. Nothing staged, nothing stock.
Hedge trimming around Highton
The same crew, the same day rates, in the suburbs next door:
Other services in Highton
Tree services made easy
At Aps Tree Removal, we simplify the tree and hedge removal experience with a clear, step-by-step approach.
Contact us
Want to learn more? Call 0422 856 090 or send the form and speak with Api.
Get a quote
Getting a quote is quick, easy, and free.
On-site inspection
A quick, thorough site assessment — species, access and risks.
Professional removal
Clean and safe work, chipped and cleaned up — no mess, no hassle.
What clients across the Geelong region say
Joseph Faltas
26 June 2023
APi is a great guy , honest and knowledgeable
Cathy Palio
26 June 2023
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! I can’t speak highly enough of Api and his team from APS tree removal. It was a huge job and they tackled it with ease and a smile…
Ann Davies
26 June 2023
Prompt and efficient service - courteous and helpful - a pleasure to have them on the job - would definitely recommend them to friends
Ann D
21 June 2023 · Malvern East
Most efficient and prompt - very friendly and will use them again
Jason M
18 May 2023 · Taylors Hill
Api and the team were very professional and did a thorough job including immaculate clean up. Highly recommend due to exceptional service. Their price…
Travis
28 Mar 2023 · Werribee
Professional courteous on time and service to the next level completed everything cleaned up and have no hesitation in recommending there service than…
Jennifer D
14 Mar 2023 · Sunbury
Api was a force of nature, the team felled 15 very large pine trees in 2 days and removed stumps. They cleaned up the site, left the wood in neat pile…
Heath
1 Mar 2023 · Point Cook
They did an awesome job, the trees look great, they did pruning and removed 2 others. Cleaned you after themselves. super happy. Thanks guys
Loryn
13 Feb 2023 · Wyndham Vale
Awesome service! Super efficient, neat and tidy. All the team were respectful and pleasant to deal with. Job done to a high standard, will definately…
Belinda
11 Jan 2023 · Niddrie
Very prompt and efficient
David A
31 Dec 2022 · Werribee
Connected with Aps Tree Removal and would recommend them
Mark
30 Dec 2022 · Altona Meadows
Connected with Aps Tree Removal and would recommend them
Highton Hedge Pruning & Trimming — common questions
Do I need a permit to remove a tree in Highton?
Greater Geelong has no local law for trees on private land — its 2024 review chose not to introduce one — so the test is the state canopy-tree clause: a planning permit for a canopy tree on a vacant residential lot, or one near the front or rear boundary of a lot with a house, decided through VicSmart in about ten business days. Overlays on the title still apply. Across Victoria, Clause 52.37 Canopy Trees also applies since 15 September 2025: a planning permit is needed to remove, destroy or lop one in a residential zone if the lot is vacant, or, where there is an existing house, if any part of the trunk is within 6 m of the narrowest street frontage or 4.5 m of the rear boundary. Api checks both at the quote.
How much does hedge trimming cost in Highton?
Length, height, growth and access. Tell Api how tall you want it and he will quote the cut and the clean-up together, free.
How long does it take?
A morning for most Highton hedges; a day for a long, tall screen or a hard reduction. We book to the season the hedge needs.
Can you get in if the access is tight?
Yes. Hedges on the boundary of a side path are the most common job we do in Highton; we work from the accessible side and from platforms where the path is too narrow.
What happens to the waste?
Sheets under the hedge, everything raked and chipped, driveway and path blown. The mulch is yours if you want it; otherwise it goes to a green-waste recycler.
My hedge is bare at the bottom and too tall — can it be fixed?
Most species, yes: reduce the height, narrow the top so light reaches the base, feed it and give it a season. Conifers are the exception — they can be shaped but not restored from bare wood.