We recently went through a very emotional experience with one of our beloved trees, and I honestly cannot express how grateful we are to Mr. Donald M. Araki. From the very beginning, Mr. Donald was incredibly patient, thoughtful. He listened carefully to all of our concerns, assessed the tree in detail, and spent a long time walking us through possible causes, treatments, and recovery strategies. What stood out immediately was not only his kindness, but also his depth of knowledge and decades of real-world arboriculture experience. Donald clearly has a genuine passion for tree care and tree biology. During our conversation, he discussed fungal diseases, tissue damage, nutrient uptake, organic fertilization, fungicide strategies, canopy behavior, injection treatments, pruning effects, and long-term tree recovery with the kind of curiosity and technical understanding that only comes from someone who has dedicated many years to arboriculture. You can tell he truly studies trees, thinks deeply about them, and cares about preserving them whenever possible. What touched us most was that he never treated this as "just another job." When we told him how much we loved the tree, he immediately understood the emotional connection. He spoke with empathy, sincerity, and genuine concern. Even while explaining complicated technical issues, he remained encouraging and hopeful, helping us feel less helpless during a stressful situation. It is rare to meet someone who combines professional expertise with such humanity and generosity. Mr. Donald M. Araki is exactly that kind of person -- knowledgeable, curious, experienced, honest, and deeply compassionate. If you need someone for tree diagnosis, arboriculture, pruning, tree management, or long-term tree care, I wholeheartedly recommend Donald. We feel extremely lucky to have spoken with him. read more

We've hired Tree Specialist Inc several times for over a decade, and don't look elsewhere. My contact has always been Victor Perez. I suspect all the crews and crew leaders are equally as good. He shows up for a consult on time. Just this week he showed up 20 minutes after I texted him. We discussed what I wanted done and he made several suggestions that I agreed with and gave the ok. Two days after I contacted him the work was done. How good is that? read more

July 2022: These guys are the best. A Chinese Pistache tree limb split in my front yard, and after I called, Victor was here within a day. A couple of days later he came back to cut up the fallen limb, lighten the load in the top of the tree, and balance the whole look. He also gave me his expert opinion about what's causing my very large Japanese maple to die (oak root fungus). Fall 2021: Don and his crew did extensive trimming of many trees in my yard that hadn't been trimmed in years. They are clean, thorough, professional, polite, and priced very fairly. I wouldn't hesitate to use their services again. read more

Great experience with The Tree Specialists. They came out on a weekend and ground our tree stump and were on time, thorough, cleaned up after and gave us an extremely reasonable price. Will definitely recommend. C Stephens in Los Gatos read more

I've had 3 experiences with The Tree Specialist and they've exceeded my expectations every time. The first was an impromptu call for help on my side to remove trimmings left behind by a company that did unauthorized work at my mom's. Victor got someone out immediately and charged a nominal amount to remove the cuttings. As I witnessed my mom's place transforming into a veritable jungle, I realized it was time to get someone in to do some serious pruning -- someone I could *trust.* So I called Victor who scheduled an estimate and spent at least an hour with my mom and I, discussing what I thought needed to be done and offering some suggestions that he had. He provided an estimate on the spot -- quite reasonable. So I engaged them to do the work. Today, the crew came and spent the day pruning 4 olives, 2 junipers and 2 pepper trees. In addition, they did a bit of weed whacking along the driveway, removed 2 dead trees, distributed mulch, and removed 4 very large, bushlike weeds in the front. They pruned artistically, especially with the olives. Mom and I are so pleased with their work, their ethic, and the value for the money. Victor has delivered on all fronts. He's always reachable, goes over and above, and is a complete gentleman to boot. Also, the crew was amazing. Couldn't be happier! read more

Called to see if I could get someone out to assess the health of the old oak trees on my property (they are dripping sap). The guy spent 20 min on the phone with me - diagnosing the problem (beetle), said it was harmless, and recommended against any treatment. Another arborist recommended spraying the tree. I appreciate their holistic approach. read more

Francisco and his team at The Tree Specialists, did a really fabulous job for us. We removed trees from the back and trimmed many and the biggest and most worrying job was pruning our big Oak tree in the front that had been neglected for many many years. They did an OUTSTANDING job. Exceeded our expectations and really took a lot of care on the Oak to let it breathe and stand in its grandeur. Patrick read more

Called Tree Specialists in a pinch when a huge branch came down. Answered the call and had guys at my home ASAP. Clean and professional. Would not call anyone else. Local business serving Willow Glen. AAA+++ all around. read more

The Tree Specialist - Broken branch - Tree Services Near Me - San Jose, California

If I could give 10 stars I would. I met Don Araki and his team when I needed help with our family property. It was an unbelievable task but with grace, kindness, responsibility and professionalism they got the impossible job done. The team was there working everyday when they said they would. Financially respectful and ethical. Our place looks amazing. To say that Don and his team went above and beyond to help us with our trees, property cleanup is an understatement. I would highly recommend him and his company to anyone. He has a lifetime client in us for sure! read more

In dealing with Don Araki, he was professional, reliable, knowledgeable and passionate about his work. He is the owner of Tree Specialist, Inc. He really went above and beyond by fitting us in on short notice. We needed some assistance very quickly and Don made us a priority and we are very appreciative for his prompt and professional service. I highly recommend giving him a call. He is very knowledgeable. read more

I found this company in a Diamond Review book sent to my home. I called Don Araki, the owner, and a certified arborist. He drove to my home in San Mateo to look over the work to be done. He spent extra time letting me know what he would do and his approach to the work - making sure any trimming would be done so that the trees would grow and not be 'hacked'. He gave a very fair price and then exceeded all expectations when his crew arrived to do the work. He is now my go-to guy for all significant landscaping work on my property. Absolutely think he's the best around. read more

I've been meaning to write this review for months, but kept forgetting. We had Don Araki, the owner of The Tree Specialist take down three very tall pine trees back in December, just before the big storm hit here. In total we interviewed seven different arborist/tree cutters before we settled on Don, and did so because he was professional, personable, and really knew what he was talking about. In fact, he knew more about trees, disease (including Sudden Oak Death) and other maladies than anyone I've ever spoken with, and I lived on 13 acres up in the mountains for 20 years, and had many tree cutters over that time. I was not disappointed. His crew was exceptional. They were professional, quick, thorough and considerate. Not only did they take down those trees in a confined space, the house next door had just been remodeled, so they had to make sure that nothing hit the house. After taking down the trees they then went and trimmed the huge Maple I have hanging over my office as well. Then when they were done they not only cleaned up everything, they cleaned up the neighbor's yard, including blowing off all the sawdust and all of the pine needles that my dead trees had dropped. When the storm hit the next day, starting with an amazing amount of wind, I didn't have anything drop off the Maple into my yard. I almost wish I had a bunch of dead trees just to get these guys back. OK. I'm kidding on that last part, but if I had a need I would call Don in a heart beat. The whole thing was as great an experience as you can get considering nobody every wants to drop a mature tree. read more

I called this place, which is located in San Jose, to ask about getting a free estimate to cut down a tree in my backyard. The guy who answered said it would be expensive to get a truck out my way, which is in south San Jose. Really? Too bad for them. I guess they don't want my business, or my money. read more

I have used Don Araki for my tree work for years. He's done several big jobs for me, including the removal of about 12 large redwood trees that were damaging a pool deck. He is very professional and his prices are fair. I would highly recommend Don and The Tree Specialist! read more

Don ARAKI is a professional arborist. He knows his stuff. You won't be disappointed when you hire him.

I've used the Tree Specialists twice now to prune large oaks, redwoods, and a variety of other trees on our property. Both times they've been great - professional, thorough, clean, reasonably priced etc. They clearly know what they're doing. Very knowledgable about all types of trees -- take great care not to damage the trees or anything around them. We had them thin a very large redwood and it came out beautifully. The oaks require more care and attention and we've learned a lot about taking care of them by working with the Tree Specialists. Francisco is fantastic and very responsive. Even when they missed a couple of things, they came back and fixed them without any hassle. I plan to stick with these guys for a very long time. read more

We engaged Tree Specialist to trip some trees, remove others, and chip their trimmings as well as piles of brush we had created by our own efforts. The Tree Specialist crew showed up on time and worked diligently until all of the work was completed. They did more than we asked them to do and did a great job. They did a great job of cleaning up. In short, we got more than we bargained for and were very happy with the service and the price was fair. read more

Let me first say that I have not worked with many tree services in the past, but I just have to say how impressed I was with the level of services offered by Tree Specilists, Inc. of San Jose and from Francisco Cardenas. We will shortly be renewing the Landscape at the Alura Inn in San Jose and needed some big tree work done first. The trees had perhaps never seen a service and were wildly overgrown and unkept-and big! Francisco came out to the appointment (ahead of time) and we met and discussed the issues at hand-he was very pleasant and really grasped what we were trying to do to give the Alura Inn a nice facelift. He seemed confidant and very knowlegable-got back to us with a proposal within 1 day and was able to schedule the project within one week!...everything that we had hoped for. The price was very reasonable and the job was completed yestereday-I 've just got to say what a great job he and his crew did for the Hotel-it now can be landscaped as has been envisioned. They even went above and beyond by pointing out some additional issues with the property and taking care of them straight away. The trees look wonderful and this tree company has my strongest recomendations! Look no further if you want a reasonable price, licensed and insured, fast service and the highest quality work-nice going guys!! read more

I highly recommend Don Araki and his tree climbers and ground crew. I talked with six different tree companies before deciding on Don's company. All said our job was "very challenging" as it involved pruning a 70 foot Monterey Pine that overhangs a large deep creek. Quotes to do the work varied considerably. We selected The Tree Specialist because we liked Don's approach, his price was reasonable (in the middle of the range), he was knowledgable, and he didn't seem intimidated by the task at hand. The result went well beyond what we expected and we couldn't be more pleased. The tree looks great, clean up was excellent, and Don visited the work site on both days to make sure the crew knew how to navigate the unusual assignment of weight reduction and selective limb pruning over a deep creek bed. read more

Their tree work is great.....not cheap but good.....their cleanup is good.....their follow up not so good.

We recently bought a house with a yard... yay! But my husband and I know next to nothing about caring for trees since we had always lived in apartments or condos before, and we have 15 trees on our new property. We were specifically concerned about the large olive tree in very very close proximity to our house. I called The Tree Specialist early one morning to ask about booking a consultation, and Don was able to come out and see us the same day. He was incredibly knowledgeable about trees and other aspects of home care, maintenance and landscaping, and really took his time answering all our questions and making helpful suggestions. I feel much more confident in our ability to care for our trees and prevent any future issues... and I learned we have 3 more fruit trees than we thought we did! His quote for tree removal and trimming was very reasonable based on what i have heard from others, and we are looking forward to working with him. read more

Just contacted Don Araki, the Tree Specialist by email and he responded immediately. He provided great advice and suggested a good timeline for managing a very large sugar pine in the front yard of a property I manage in Cupertino. Don is always available and ready to provide excellent advice and very reasonable bids. He is the first one I contact for tree emergencies. read more

I called Don on Friday night for some urgent work over the weekend. He went above and beyond service and did a great job right on time. I highly recommend The Tree Specialist guys and would call them for all my other arborist projects. read more

Don and his team did a great job. He gave us great advice on what needed to be done. It was efficiently completed and the clean up was great. read more

Fantastic service from a spectacular guy. Zero mess when Don was finished, and the trees look beautiful and happy.

We are glad we found the Tree Specialist in Home Advisors web site. Our lasting impressions with Don Araki and his team after hiring them to cut and stem-grinded over twelve dead/dangerous Elm and Cedar trees from our house are: * Don's dedication to customer's needs and his in-depth knowledge about trees and landscaping * Tony - the foreman - is very helpful and courteous. His experience and leadership helped mitigating a minor conflict with a neighbor while we were not home resulted in such a good way that we now win a new friendly neighbor * The crew's excellent performance: they worked together in harmony, fast and safely * The modern, well-maintained, hi-tech, heavy-duty Vermeer equipments they used at out site * Fair, competitive price and friendly service We have recommended the Tree Specialist service to our daughter in Los Altos, to our friend in Palo Alto, and to our neighbors in Atherton. Wished we could give out 10 stars in Yelp for the Tree Specialist. Highly recommended to the public without any reservation! read more

I cannot recommend The Tree Specialist highly enough. We hired them to prune 6 of the trees in our yard (which are all different types). Don gave us an idea of how he would approach each tree, and his crew did an absolutely amazing job. Our trees have never looked better! There is one tree in particular that we had pruned a number of years ago, and when they finished it looked like a smaller version of itself. When Don & his crew finished, it looked like a *better* version of itself; we have never seen it look as good as it does now! Many thanks to The Tree Specialist! read more