Tree Care
Verticillium Wilt: The Soil-Borne Tree Killer Most Homeowners Never See Coming
Verticillium wilt can begin with a fungus that’s been waiting beneath your lawn for years — possibly since before you owned the property. It can
Sometimes, you need more than someone with a pair of pruners or a chainsaw — sometimes you need the kind of expertise only an ISA-certified arborist can provide. RTEC Treecare is here to help in these kinds of situations, and our team of certified arborists is ready to help keep your trees vibrant, healthy, and safe.
Whether you need disease diagnostics or cabling and bracing services, our ISA-certified arborists are ready to step in with the guidance and hands-on support you’re looking for.
Anyone can call themselves an arborist — there’s no rule stopping them. But calling yourself an ISA-certified arborist? That’s a completely different story. Earning that designation takes serious work: years of hands-on experience, passing a rigorous and detailed exam, and keeping up with ongoing education just to hold onto the credential.
That’s exactly why it matters so much to homeowners, property managers, and municipal staff. It cuts right through the noise and separates your average tree-care worker from someone who genuinely knows what they’re doing. And when you consider how much value trees add to a property — and the real risks they can pose when something goes wrong — having that level of expertise on your side isn’t just nice to have. It’s worth a lot.
RTEC Treecare's office at 2828 Mary St carries a Falls Church mailing address in the 22042 ZIP. The arborists who do our assessments are based here, in the city itself, not routed in from a distant depot. For consulting work, where a diagnosis may need a follow-up and a recommendation is worth more when the person who made it can come back to check on it, being based in the city is a genuine advantage rather than a marketing line.
The City of Falls Church proper is a couple of miles up the road, and our arborists are through it constantly.
Falls Church is an independent city, the smallest incorporated municipality in Virginia, with its own government rather than being part of Fairfax County or Arlington. The 2020 census counted 14,658 residents in just 2.05 square miles under a deep, established canopy. The city was the first community in Virginia recognized as a Tree City USA and holds the longest such record in the state, and it runs a real urban forestry program with a City Arborist and an Urban Forestry Commission.
Because it governs itself, its tree rules are its own, and knowing exactly where they apply saves a lot of confusion.
The city is direct about this: tree management on single-family properties is not regulated by the City of Falls Church, except in specific circumstances. For an ordinary single-family homeowner, that means you generally do not need a city permit to remove a tree in your own yard. The exceptions are worth knowing, because they catch more properties than people expect.
The first is development. Any building project that requires a stormwater or grading permit also has to provide a landscape conservation plan, and new homes are required to preserve or plant enough trees to reach 20 percent canopy within ten years. The second is a designated Specimen Tree. The city, through its Urban Forestry Commission, can designate individual trees as specimens for their size, form or historical significance, and once a tree carries that designation a removal permit is required even on private land, granted only if the tree is dying or dangerous. The third is a Resource Protection Area, the regulated buffer along the city's streams, where all vegetation is protected and removal needs a permit.
That framework is exactly why a credentialed arborist is useful here rather than optional. If a Specimen Tree on your property has declined, someone has to document, to the city's standard, whether it truly qualifies as dying or dangerous, and a tree risk assessment done to the ISA method, weighing likelihood of failure against the target and the consequences, is what supports that case. If you are building, an arborist's preservation plan is what keeps the trees you intend to save from being quietly killed by root damage during construction, the kind of damage that does not show for a year or two. And on the ordinary healthy tree in an ordinary yard, the honest answer is often that the city does not require anything, and neither do we beyond good care.
We assess Falls Church trees as neighbors, in the city our office shares a ZIP code with. In a place two square miles across, a recommendation that does not hold up travels fast. We would rather be the arborists this city trusts because the advice was right.
Our certified arborists provide a variety of services in the metropolitan Falls Church, VA, ranging from the common to the unusual. But while we’re happy to provide any arborist services you may need, the following are some of the most common ways we help our clients.
Dealing with a fallen tree or worried about potential storm damage? We’re here to help—offering 24/7 emergency tree services to keep your property safe!
While some tree-related problems are obvious, others can be surprisingly subtle. And because prompt, proactive care tends to lead to better outcomes, it’s important to monitor your trees for any of the following signs or symptoms, so you can provide them with the support they need.
Getting started is easy; you can set up a consultation via phone, email, or our online booking form linked below.
One of our ISA-certified arborists or environmental technicians will take the time to listen carefully to each question or concern.
Our crew will arrive at the scheduled time and carry out the work in a professional, safe, and respectful manner.
We’ll always share some recommendations for the ongoing support and care of your plants and trees.
ISA certification matters — but it doesn’t mean you should just go with the first certified arborist you come across. You want the best team you can find, not just a qualified one.
Here’s what we think sets RTEC Treecare apart and gives our clients the peace of mind they deserve.
In addition to having a team of arborists who’ve been certified by the International Society of Arboriculture, RTEC Treecare is proud to have been the first tree-care company in the state of Virginia to earn accreditation from the Tree Care Industry Association (TCIA).
Everyone on the RTEC Treecare team — from our ground crews to climbing arborists and everyone in between — shares a complete dedication to safety. We always keep the health and well-being of our clients, crews, and bystanders in mind and never start a job unless we can complete it safely.
Careless tree work can do a number on your landscape, hardscape, and structures. That’s why we use zero-impact techniques — advanced rigging systems, ground protection mats, and cranes when needed — to make sure your property stays protected throughout the entire process.
To provide the kind of award-winning tree care our clients expect, we maintain the professional-grade tools and equipment needed to get the job done properly. And that applies to all of the gear we use, from simple hand pruners and hard hats to cutting-edge diagnostic tools and aerial lifts.
RTEC Treecare has been serving homeowners, commercial property managers, and municipalities in Falls Church, VA for more than 30 years. Over that time, our arborists have seen just about every tree-care challenge you can imagine.
Unlike some other tree-care companies that can be hard to reach or leave you wondering about the state of your project, our arborists prioritize crystal clear communication. From your initial call or email until we’ve completed the job, we’ll be sure you’re informed every step of the way.
RTEC Treecare holds all the required licenses and carries comprehensive insurance coverage — because operating with integrity isn’t just the right thing to do, it also gives our clients the confidence they deserve.
From tree pruning and removals to soil aeration and mosquito control, the RTEC Treecare team can provide the kind of solutions homeowners and property managers in Falls Church, VA deserve.
The RTEC Treecare arborists are proud to serve a wide array of clients, from homeowners to homeowners’ associations to commercial property managers to government agencies. Visit our Who We Serve page for a comprehensive list of clients we serve, or contact us directly to learn if we can provide the arborist services you need.
Our service area includes most towns, cities, and unincorporated areas of the DC metropolitan area, including parts of Maryland, Northern Virginia, and Washington, DC. You can see some of the specific communities we serve below!
Verticillium wilt can begin with a fungus that’s been waiting beneath your lawn for years — possibly since before you owned the property. It can
When a tree starts looking unhealthy, most people look up. They check the leaves for discoloration, scan the branches for dieback, or inspect the trunk
Maybe you noticed it while mowing the lawn or edging the sidewalk. A branch near the top of your favorite oak looks a little too
Feel free to leave your contact information on our online form. A consultation is always free, and it’s the first step towards finding a solution for your trees!
