The credentials behind every estimate

ISA

ISA Certified Arborist

FL-9674A · Joe M. Lucas

FL

Licensed & Insured

State of Florida

A+

BBB A+ Rated

File open since 2004

40

Years in business

Family-owned since 1984

What we do

Tree care for Florida homes — done the right way.

From a leaning oak after a Nor'easter to a 50-year-old water oak that needs a careful crown reduction, our crew handles every job with an ISA-certified eye for the health of the tree and the safety of your home.

Tree Removal

Hazardous, dead, or in the wrong spot? Safe sectional take-downs with full clean-up. Crane-assisted on tight lots.

Roped & sectional drops
Crane & bucket-truck access
Full debris haul-away

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Tree Trimming & Pruning

Structural pruning that follows ANSI A300 standards — thinning, dead-wooding, clearance over roofs and driveways.

Crown thinning & clean-up
Storm-readiness pruning
Building & driveway clearance

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Stump Grinding

Grind below grade so you can re-sod or re-plant. Chips stay on site or get hauled away — your call.

4–6″ below grade
Surface roots ground out
Re-sod ready

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Storm & Emergency Response

Tree on the house? On the car? Across the driveway? Call any time — we're on the road within hours during named storms.

24/7 storm dispatch
Insurance documentation
Tarp & secure on arrival

Emergency call →

Hurricane Prep & Risk Assessment

A pre-season walk-through by our ISA arborist — we flag the limbs & trees most likely to fail before the next storm.

Tree-by-tree report
Prioritized work plan
Insurance-ready documentation

Book a walkthrough

Palm Tree Trimming

Sabal, queen, washingtonia — pruned to Florida ANSI standards. No "hurricane cuts" that hurt the palm.

Seed-pod & frond removal
9-to-3 cutting standard
Tall palms via bucket / climbing

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Land Clearing & Lot Cleanup

Building site? Overgrown lot? We clear, grind, and haul — ready for the foundation crew on day one.

Selective or full clearing
Underbrush & saplings
Hauling & disposal included

Get a quote

Crane-Assisted Removals

When a tree is over the house or a pool, a crane is the safest tool in the box. We've got the rigging and the relationships.

Up to 100-ton crane support
Tight-access expertise
Coordinated lift & pickup

Talk to us

Arborist Consulting

Tree health assessment, pest & disease diagnosis, written reports for HOAs, insurance, or real-estate closings.

Tree health diagnosis
Written ISA reports
Real-estate & insurance docs

Book a consult

ISA

Certified Arborist

FL·9674A

Why an ISA Arborist matters

The difference between a guy with a chainsaw and a tree-care professional.

An ISA Certified Arborist has passed a comprehensive exam from the International Society of Arboriculture and maintains continuing-education credits to keep the credential. That's a real, verifiable distinction — and on the First Coast, it's rare.

When you hire Lucas, your trees are evaluated, pruned, and (when necessary) removed by someone who actually knows tree biology — not just how to run a saw.

Pruning that follows ANSI A300 standards — not "top-and-cut"
Pest & disease diagnosis by a credentialed eye
Written reports accepted by insurers, HOAs & municipalities
Verifiable cert ID — look up FL-9674A on isa-arbor.com

Where we work

Four counties. One family of arborists.

From our shop on Edgar Street in Atlantic Beach, our crews reach every corner of Duval, St. Johns, Clay and Nassau Counties — the entire First Coast and Northeast Florida.

Call (904) 241-3533 All service areas →

Atlantic BeachHome base · 205-11 Edgar St

JacksonvilleDuval County

Neptune BeachDuval · The Beaches

Jacksonville BeachDuval · The Beaches

MandarinSouth Duval

ArlingtonEast Duval

Ponte Vedra BeachSt. Johns County

St. AugustineSt. Johns County

Orange ParkClay County

Fleming IslandClay County

MiddleburgClay County

Fernandina BeachNassau County

YuleeNassau County

Est. 1984 · Atlantic Beach, FL

Four decades rooted in Northeast Florida.

Orlando Lucas started this company with a pickup truck, a chainsaw, and a simple belief: property owners deserve honest advice about their trees — not just the cheapest bid.

Forty years later, his son Joe Musgrove Lucas carries the same ethic — and adds an ISA Certified Arborist credential (FL-9674A) that means every pruning cut, every risk assessment, and every removal decision is backed by science, not guesswork.

We're still family-owned. Still based on Edgar Street. Still answering our own phones when a storm rolls through at midnight.

Our full story →

Lucas Tree Service crew working on a large tree trunk in Jacksonville, FL

ISA CERT · FL-9674A

ISA

To us this is more than a job — it's a way of life. Few people really enjoy what they do, but here at Lucas Tree Service, we all do.

The Lucas Family · Atlantic Beach, FL

A pruning cut is a wound — we treat it like one

Not all trimming is the same.

"Topping" a tree is fast and cheap — and it slowly kills the tree while making it more likely to fail in a storm. Here's how our ISA-certified crew actually approaches your canopy, the way the science says it should be done.

Method 01

Crown Cleaning

Selective removal of the dead, diseased, broken, and weakly-attached branches from the canopy. It's the most common pruning we do — and done on a regular cycle, it stops small problems before they ever become large ones.

Method 02

Crown Thinning

Cleaning, plus the careful removal of select branches to let light and air move through the tree. Crucially for Florida, it reduces the wind sail — so your oak flexes with a storm instead of catching it like a sail.

Method 03

Crown Reduction

When a tree is simply too large for its space, we reduce its size the right way — cutting limbs back to the point of origin or to a lateral (the next fork) that can sustain the rest of the limb. No stubs, no guesswork.

What we won't do

Topping

Cutting limbs back to bare stubs. It depends heavily on the species, and for most shade trees it's the wrong call — it invites decay and weak regrowth. We'll tell you honestly when a tree should be reduced instead, or removed.

How it works

From first call to clean yard — four steps.

01

Free on-site estimate

Joe or a crew lead visits your property. We assess every tree you're concerned about — no charge, no pressure, no upsell.

02

Written quote, same day

You get a clear, itemized quote in writing. No vague pricing. If the tree is straightforward, we can usually start within 48 hours.

03

Crew arrives on time

Our team shows up when we say we will. Equipment is staged, your lawn is protected, and neighbors are notified when the work is loud.

04

Full clean-up, every time

Chips, logs, brush — all hauled away unless you want the wood. We blow down the driveway and walk the property with you before we leave.

What neighbors say

Real work. Real reviews.

A Nextdoor Neighborhood Favorite across 15 First Coast neighborhoods

★★★★★

via Nextdoor · Atlantic Beach

"Very happy with the service and price for taking down an invasive camphor tree. Orlando and his crew were extremely professional and priced to fit my budget. They opened up my canopy to let more light into my backyard — and the cleanup was spotless."

M.R.Atlantic Beach, Duval County

★★★★★

via Nextdoor · Ponte Vedra Beach

"Quick, efficient, and professional. What stood out was the thorough clean-up after completing the job — they left no yard debris behind. Their estimate came in below two other companies I called. Very satisfied."

C.T.Ponte Vedra Beach, St. Johns County

★★★★★

via Nextdoor · Orange Park

"We had a large oak over our back fence that needed to come down. The crew was courteous and careful — they even relocated a bird nest they found in the canopy before starting. You don't see that level of care from most tree companies."

P.K.Orange Park, Clay County

36+ reviews across Yelp, Nextdoor & Google · Read more on Yelp →

Real jobs · real crew · real results

40 years of work on the First Coast.

Every photo below is from an actual Lucas Tree Service job in Northeast Florida — our crew, our trucks, your neighborhood.

Lucas Tree Service crane and branded truck mid-removal on a Jacksonville job site — blue sky, fresh logs on the ground, crew visible — Crane-assisted removal · Duval County

Climber roped high in a Florida pine tree against a clear blue sky — Pine removal · Atlantic Beach area

Red bucket truck extending to tall Florida palm trees at a residential home — Palm trimming · The Beaches

Close-up of stump grinder wheel cutting through a large stump, wood chips flying — Stump grinding · Clay County

Two Lucas Tree Service crew members removing a storm-downed tree over a backyard pond in Jacksonville — Storm cleanup · St. Johns County

Lucas Tree Service fleet of branded trucks, chippers, and equipment staged at our Atlantic Beach yard — Our fleet · 205-11 Edgar Street, Atlantic Beach FL

16+ photos on Yelp · Facebook

Get a free estimate

Tell us about your trees.

Every estimate is on-site and no-charge. One of our arborists will walk your property, answer questions, and hand you a written quote before they leave.

Prefer to call? Reach us at (904) 241-3533 (Mon–Fri 7:30 AM–6 PM · Sat 8 AM–4 PM) or direct at (904) 887-1492. Storm emergencies: 24/7.

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Forty years caring for Jacksonville's oaks, palms & pines.