Lyle Blum, LLC Cert Arborist & Expert Tree Climber

Lyle Blum responded promptly to telephone calls, providing a written proposal and scheduling the job. He called the night before to confirm arrival time. Showed up on time with a professional crew. Trees look beautiful. Excellent work. Would hire again.

All work was completed as scheduled. The results are great. The team was well-equipped, efficient and worked safely. We had the same good experience with having them remove some trees a few years ago. This is a well-run business with quality personnel.

He's an Arborist. I would give him like a triple A; he knows what he's doing. There's so many bad tree people out there. He's like extremely good. He climbs the trees himself. He had another guy doing it, too. They don't top your tree, which is like the worst thing for your tree. He's so good. I read about him somewhere but I got him as a referral from one of the landscape people. I would give him an A-plus. He's amazing. He's super good. The big thing is that he's knowledgeable and knows how to prune trees, not just chop. I mean, he's insured, he cleaned everything up, very professional, but the most important thing is he knows how to take care of trees.

It did not go well. The man who came out was courteous and provided an estimate but did not complete any work. The company did not respond to multiple telephone calls. Let this be a warning to others who might consider this arborist and expert tree climber.

Great! Arrived exactly when scheduled. Completed a difficult installation-no drama; price as quoted.

No work was done, no response to my call.

Lyle was responsive in his initial calls to me and assessing the health of my spruce tree. He determined that it needed cut down, quoted me, and we scheduled a date for him to come out and remove it. He instructed me that since my street has street parking and would need room for his equipment that I would need to block of parking spaces prior to his arrival which I did. BUT HE DIDN'T SHOW. I called him mid day and at the end of the day and he has not returned my calls, which has been 5 days ago. This is extremely unprofessional in my opinion which I was not expecting from someone so highly rated by others. I would not use Lyle Blum for any work in the future.

The guys were on time and really worked hard. Their equipment made short work of a very large mess. I liked the fact that they were safety conscious and wore special hard hats with sound protection. They cleaned up afterwards and were gone in a much shorter period of time than expected. I was pleased with their work and would recommend them & would use them again.

Lyle came out exactly on time to give us an estimate. He listened well and gave us an estimate which was reasonable and said they could do the work the very next week so we hired him. He and his crew came exactly when he said they would and did the work and were in and out in 2 hours. They cleaned up very well. Lyle was flexible when I asked him to add a few more branches, and he adjusted the original estimate on the spot, again very reasonable cost. We would use him again and recommend his company highly.

Lyle is our tree guy. We no longer bother calling anyone else for bids when we need work done because he is responsive, fair, professional, and we trust him. I really like the fact that when we call and leave a message, he ALWAYS returns our call (often in the evening when I'm assuming he's finished working for the day). When he comes out for an estimate, he doesn't force you to stand there for an hour and chit chat--he does what he came to do and everyone gets on with their days. He makes an effort to keep healthy trees in place and not do unnecessary work, which we appreciate. Once a job is scheduled, he and his crew arrive without fail and work non-stop until it's done. Our yard is on a hill, sloped, and he is unable to get much of his large equipment into it. He and his crew still take great care of the landscaping and property--even avoiding disturbing my great grandmother's peony on one call.

He came out, did a visual assessment of the work needed. He seemed qualified and professional, his feedback was on point. He said he would email a quote within a few days. After a week and a half of no email or call back, I called and left a voice message, with email address again and phone number. Again, no response. When you get no response or follow up from a contractor you have to give them a Fail.

Very well. Estimate was given shortly after call and was on time. Arrived on time. Worked very hard and very carefully. Did only minimal damage to other vegetation. Cleanup was good, but I did have to more work than I wanted. This was beyond the mulch mountain that was left of the stump debris, but I was told upfront by all companies that that debris would not be disposed of.

Very well. Estimate was given shortly after call and was on time. Arrived on time. Worked very hard and very carefully. Did only minimal damage to other vegetation. Cleanup was good, but I did have to more work than I wanted. This was beyond the mulch mountain that was left of the stump debris, but I was told upfront by all companies that that debris would not be disposed of.

Actually the work itself went very well, BUT they removed a brick edging without my knowledge and neglected to replace the bricks back into position. When I cleaned up, I realized what they had done, I called back. Apparently after final payment was made, their professionalism was finished. A couple times I was told that they would be back OF COURSE. Then I was told straight up that they didn't feel like returning. Eventually owner became quite hostile and wouldn't return calls.

Without my knowledge or consent, the crew removed all the brick edging along the perimeter of my yard. Of course, I would have given my permission if it was necessary BUT WITH THE AGREEMENT THAT THEY BE PUT BACK!!! Because of the mountain of ground stump debris that I had to deal with, I didn't notice that the bricks were gone. When I called Lyle, he vaguely said that he would come out when he was in the neighborhood. After ample time, I got no response when I left messages to find out when this might happen. I finally got a response when I called and didn't identify myself and said that I wanted work done. At this time he curtly snarled that he wasn't going to do the work, to quit calling, and to do the work myself. SO, MAKE SURE THAT ALL WORK/CLEANUP IS COMPLETE BEFORE HE TAKES YOUR MONEY BECAUSE THAT WILL BE THE LAST YOU'LL SEE OF HIM!!

Provider never contacted me after I left message.

I contacted Lyle Blum along with two other arborists via email on February 22, 2016 requesting a quote to trim two small trees on my property. I included a link to a personal web site with pictures of the trees in need of trimming. I had hoped to have the work completed before the first day of spring. Lyle called me that same day and left a voicemail message. He called again the next day and left another message. I returned his call a few days later and we arranged for him to come out to my house for an estimate on Sunday, March 6 at 9:00 AM. He was very prompt and gave me a written estimate that I thought was great so I hired him on the spot. He said he had to check his schedule to see when he could fit me in and that he would call. We shook hands and he left. I expected to hear from him within a week. After two weeks, nothing. A third week passed, still no contact from Lyle. In late March I sent him an email through his website asking when he thought I might be scheduled for the trimming we had agreed upon. Still nothing. On April 6th, 7th and 8th I called him and left voicemail messages asking when he thought he was going to do the work he had contracted to do, whether he was still interested in doing the work he had contracted to do or if he was no longer interested in doing the work he had contracted to do so I could hire somebody who would do it. As of this posting I have heard nothing from Lyle Blum. Admittedly Lyle's price should have garnered him an A+++++. However, just like Ralphie's estimate of the grade he believes his composition should have received in the movie "A Christmas Story", I now realize my reliance on Lyle Blum to perform the work he had contracted to do at the agreed upon price was a fevered pipe dream. Lyle's F grades for his Responsiveness and Professionalism are well earned and sadly tainted every other grade he received from me. By not treating me as a customer worthy of his time or attention he, and only he, left me with no other option than to give him straight Fs. Is that punitive? I won't disagree with that. But I guess in the end my job just wasn't worth much to him and he decided to ignore me rather than do the professional thing and call me and tell me he wasn't going to fulfill his obligation. I see another reviewer gave him an overall F rating for precisely the same reason I did. It too was another small job like mine. Perhaps Lyle doesn't respect potential customers when the profit margin isn't as big. What I don't understand is why that reviewer gave him a C for professionalism when clearly in both our cases we was anything but professional. I would have loved for Lyle to have done the work for which I have a contract. I would have loved to have written an objectively positive review of my encounter with him. However for Angie's list to be effective I am compelled to grade him according to my actual experience. And sadly, it was not good. Perhaps my F grade is the exception that proves the rule that he is truly an A-rated arborist. But by totally ignoring two potential customers it is only his reputation that he's hurting.

My next-door neighbor and I split the cost of having two trees between our houses removed last fall. Lyle's team did a good job, and while they were here, they took notice of a large oak in my front yard and recommended that I have it pruned. Coincidentally, I had another tree that was in a strange position very close to my house, driveway, and a retaining wall on my property, and was motivated to have that tree removed as well. After the winter, I gave Lyle a call. I left a message, and he called back within a couple hours. I was out of town, but Lyle said he'd go to my house and look at the trees, and call back with an estimate. We agreed on a price to do both the pruning of one and removal of the other. We set a date roughly three weeks later to do the work. The night before the work was scheduled, Lyle left me a message confirming that he'd be here at 8:00 am, and they arrived early and started preppinng the site. The tree that was being removed, as I said, was very close to the house and close to a retaining wall. There wasn't a lot of room, so to my novice eye, it appeared to be a tricky job. They went about the work very carefully and safely, and at no time was I nervous about damage to my or my neighbor's property. They were at it for longer than I had expected, dismantling the tree piece by piece, and finally got it out of their, leaving a clean and inconspicuous stump. Then they took to pruning the other tree. The same crew, equipped with their helmets and safety ropes, climbed up inside the tree and removed SO many excessive and/or dead branches. Again, taking longer than I expected, and leaving me with less tree than I expected! They cleaned up thoroughly and completely, and I gave him the payment for the agreed upon amount. No drama. I got what we agreed upon at the time we agreed to it. At no time did I feel concerned about injury or damage. The job was done well, and the clean up was complete. I'd definitely hire Lyle and his crew again, and intend to do so the next time that oak needs pruning. Thanks, guys!

It was amazing. Mr.Blum arrived promptly at 8:00 AM with his crew of around seven men, shredder, cherry picker and other assorted vehicles and promptly began working. All of the men were professionally trained tree climbers and it was amazing to watch them work. Their skill at performing their jobs at significant heights was just great to watch. They cleared the trees of all dead limbs, lower limbs and all growth along major branches. Removed two cypress trees badly damaged by the last two winter's sub zero temps, as well as a birch tree and a hemlock. They also removed branches which were overhanging my neighbors' houses on both sides of my home. The clean up was extremely thorough. They were on the neighbors roof raking and sweeping off all debris, cleaning their back yard, my back yard, front yard....everything. When I was looking for a tree maintenance company, I first looked to Angie's list. Although a great resource, it cannot control the actual status of those companies listed. In the monthly magazine from Angie, there were five tree cutters listed and Lyle Blum was not one of them. I called all five and left messages. Only three called back and only two showed up. Out of those two...only one gave me an estimate. I then went into Angie's list and found Lyle Blum. The price was very reasonable for the amount of work done. He was prompt to arrive, gave an estimate on the spot and awaited my decision. In a day or two, I called and agreed to contract his services, was scheduled for Dec.29th but was called in the second week to say that they had a cancellation for the 21st. Mr Blum is an honest and fair man. He is very skilled at his profession as are his associates. Their performance was of the highest degree of professionalism. (And fun to watch). His pricing is fair and worthwhile as his job is one of skill and precision and one which most of us would choose not to do. They earn every cent. There are other companies which charge more and some which charge less but do not always deliver on their promises. This man does!

Mr blum came out to my home to give me an estimate to trim a pine tree in the front of my home. he seemed very professional and gave me a reasonable price of 400.00. The job was scheduled to be done on 7/6/2015. The job was never done by this company. He never showed to do the job and never called to advise if there was any problem. I have left him several messages and sent emails and still have no response. from him. I don't think this is professional or a good way to do business. I have since had the job done by a very good company. I would not recommend this company for any job

After noticing that the Siberian Elm in my front yard was growing over the power lines on our street, I became concerned about the safety hazard the tree could pose, especially because the upper branches were getting very close to the top uninsulated line. I called the electric company only to be told that my neighborhood is not due to have trees trimmed until 2017, and basically that I would need to deal with it myself if I wanted it done sooner. I called several arborists in the area, including companies who I have used in the past and been pleased with, but the ones that answered their phones told me that they did not have line clearance certification (a must for any work around power lines) or I was forced to leave a message, and didn't get the courtesy of a return call. After not getting anywhere with the larger tree trimming companies in the area--companies that I thought would have no problems handling line clearance--I found Lyle's information and gave him a call. I left a message for him, and was delighted when he called me back within a day. He was pleasant on the phone, came out within a week to look at the tree, and gave me a quote that was extremely fair. This was at the end of July, and he scheduled the work to be done by today, Sept 2. This was very fast compared to some of the companies I've used before, who usually scheduled me 2-3 months out! After getting home today and seeing the work done, I am extremely happy with the finished job. Lyle did exactly what I asked for and more---not only did he clear the branches away from the street power lines and the service drop, he also trimmed some annoyingly low-hanging branches and evened out the canopy of the whole tree. It looks wonderful, it's exactly what I asked for, and I'm so relieved that I don't need to be concerned about the branches in the power lines any more. I will definitely be hiring Lyle for any future work! Thank you so much Lyle!!

In May of this year (2015), Mr. Blum came to my home to treat a magnolia tree that had an insect scale problem. He mentioned I might need another treatment, so when I noticed that the problem was not resolved in July, I called him and left messages for him to come back out and re-treat the tree. Calls always go to voice mail, but he did return the call and we made plans for him to come to my home the coming Saturday at 9 a.m. Mr. Blum did not show up for the appointment. I called him later that afternoon, thinking perhaps we had a miscommunication and asked him to call me back. He did not. I called again a day or two later and left another message. To date, he has not returned these calls. Mr. Blum initially seemed very professional, but unfortunately that changed during the course of our association. Why is it so difficult for contractors to just be up front and honest if they are not interested or too busy to do a job? That way, we homeowners could find someone else and not waste valuable time waiting for return calls or, worse yet, no shows. Mr. Blum showed up like an arborist but disappeared like a magician.

Lyle was very professional from the first phone call through the end of the project. He scheduled a date for the estimate and was on time. He gave a very thorough description of what was required to complete our requests and provided an estimate on the spot. We agreed to have Lyle do the work and was not disappointed. His team arrived very early on the day he scheduled and cleaned up everything when done. I will use Lyle for all of our tree services in the future.

Good communication, called back and did an estimate quickly, came on day of service on time. Did most of the cutting one day then came back the next day and finished. Did a good job cleaning up the small debris afterwards. Cut the stumps of the large trees very close to the ground which was appreciated. Very good price. We would recommend them to others. Front lawn and some plantings got beat-up but I assume this was difficult to avoid due to the size of the trees. We asked to have one limb of another tree removed while they were there and they did this also for a fair cost. Gave us the discount using their Angies List coupon which was also appreciated.

Contacted Lyle Blum and received a timely return call. The quote was delivered as promised and work was scheduled. The day before the scheduled date I received a call notifiying me that he couldn't keep my appointment because of an emergency job (very much appreciated the timely notification) and another date was scheduled. I wasn't home when the crew came out to do the work, but was pleased when I got home. The work was done as promised. Very professional service.