About
The arborist between the two of you
Boundary Tree exists because the Bay Area had no one a homeowner could call for an independent opinion on a neighbor's tree. Tree companies bid. Lawyers advise. City arborists handle city trees. Nobody wrote the report.
Michael Schuck
Michael has spent 13 years in Bay Area arboriculture across field crew leadership, operations and consulting, and has worked with the tree ordinances of 56 Bay Area cities. He founded Urban Forestry Guide, the reference site for Bay Area tree permits, ordinances and arborist reports, and California Fire Defense, its defensible-space practice. He lives in San Francisco.
Business administration coursework, UC Berkeley. Sea Scouts adult leader. Not a lawyer, not a surveyor, not a tree service.
What independence means here
- We do not sell, bid, subcontract or refer tree work, and we take no referral fees from anyone. The recommendation in the report costs us nothing and earns us nothing.
- The report is written the same way regardless of who is paying. Tree owners and neighbors receive identical treatment, and a shared engagement is welcome.
- We stay inside the arborist's lane. Property lines belong to surveyors, repair costs to contractors and engineers, legal conclusions to attorneys. The report names the hand-off instead of guessing.
- Every legal or ordinance claim in the report and on this site cites and links its primary source: the Civil Code, the case, or the municipal code section. Nothing is sourced to a blog or a tree company.
How the three sites fit together
| Site | Problem | Typical product |
|---|---|---|
| Urban Forestry Guide | A city permit, a protected tree, a development project, a tree's dollar value | Arborist report, tree protection plan, permit filing, CTLA appraisal |
| California Fire Defense | Defensible space, an insurer's letter, fire-mitigation tree removal | Defensible space plan, insurance documentation |
| Boundary Tree | A tree between two properties | Dispute Assessment, View Obstruction, Cause & Condition reports |
When your problem turns out to belong to a sister site, we say so on the first call and quote it there. One visit can produce more than one report.
Credentials and standards
- ISA Certified Arborist WE-15750A and ISA Certified Urban Forest Professional WE-15750AF, International Society of Arboriculture.
- Appraisals follow the Council of Tree and Landscape Appraisers Guide for Plant Appraisal, 10th edition, and are delivered through Urban Forestry Guide.
- Reports follow a fixed template with a limitations statement, numbered photographs, measurements in inches and feet, and cited sources. See the sample report.
Questions people ask
How do Boundary Tree, Urban Forestry Guide and California Fire Defense relate?
One arborist, one report standard, three front doors. Urban Forestry Guide is the practice and the reference site for Bay Area tree permits and ordinances. California Fire Defense handles defensible space and wildfire vegetation. Boundary Tree handles the tree between two properties. Engagement letters and invoices are issued by Urban Forestry Guide.
What are your credentials?
ISA Certified Arborist WE-15750A and ISA Certified Urban Forest Professional WE-15750AF, International Society of Arboriculture, with 13 years of Bay Area field, operations and consulting work and working knowledge of 56 city tree ordinances. Reports describe tree condition and risk in plain professional terms with photographs and measurements.
Do you work for attorneys?
Yes, as a retained consulting or testifying expert under a signed retention letter, billed hourly to the firm. See the attorneys page.
Why does independence matter so much?
Because every other arborist opinion a homeowner can get for free comes from someone who sells tree work. The report is credible to the neighbor, the mediator, the adjuster and the court precisely because nobody here profits from what it recommends.