Most jobs
By the job: one written price
One price for the whole job, set before we start. It does not grow on the day, and the dump fees are already in it.
Brush clearing services in Sonora and Tuolumne County
Brush clearing is cutting overgrown brush, manzanita, blackberry, poison oak and small trees down to the ground and getting them off the property. We do it by hand and with our Bobcat in Sonora and across Tuolumne County, for lots that got away from their owners, homes with an insurance letter and owners who live out of the area.
Most jobs get one written price before we start, with dump fees in it, and some projects are done at a flat day rate. A backyard pile takes an hour or two, most homes take a day, and steep chainsaw lots take longer. The brush is chipped, hauled away or stacked for your burn permit.
Last updated October 19, 2026.
- Price
- One written price by the job, dump fees in it. A flat day rate on some projects.
- How long
- An hour or two for a backyard pile, a day for most homes.
- The brush
- Chipped on site, hauled away or stacked for your burn permit.
- In fire season
- Plastic cutting line and water on site on every job.
Who needs brush clearing in Sonora?
Anyone whose brush has grown past what they can cut themselves. Most of our brush clearing calls come from one of these four.
- A lot that got awayManzanita, blackberry and dead limbs that grew up over a few years, often on a slope too steep to mow. CAL FIRE describes some of the brush in this unit as over-mature and taller than six feet.
- An insurance letterInsurers look at the brush around a house. Our before and after photos show them what was cut and cleared.
- A notice or a saleA CAL FIRE or city notice, or a house going on the market, where defensible space clearing around the house usually comes with it. Selling? Read what the AB 38 inspection asks for.
- Owners who live awayCabin and rental owners walk the lot with us on the phone, and get before and after photos when the work is done.
This crew was great. Had to remove tough junipers on a hill. Had a bobcat, trailer and can-do attitude to get the job done.
A 5-star Google review of our crew, quoted word for word.
What does brush clearing include?
Brush clearing includes cutting brush and undergrowth to the ground, taking out small trees and low limbs, and dealing with everything that is cut. Each plant is handled the way it should be: manzanita cut low, blackberry raked out, and poison oak bagged and hauled, never burned or mowed.
- Brush and undergrowth cut to the ground, on flat or steep ground
- Small trees and low limbs taken out
- Blackberry and poison oak thickets cut and hauled
- Everything chipped, hauled to the green waste site or stacked for your burn permit
| Plant | How we clear it | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Manzanita and chamise | Cut to the ground with brush cutters and chainsaws, then chipped or hauled. | Chamise, deer brush and manzanita cover many south-facing slopes in the oak foothills around Sonora (Tuolumne County wildfire plan, 2024). |
| Blackberry | Cut to the ground, raked out, and every vine hauled away. | The roots resprout, so we dig out the root crowns where you want it gone, or come back for a follow-up cut. |
| Poison oak | Cut by a crew in protective gear, bagged and hauled. Tools are cleaned after. | Burning it puts the oil into the smoke, and mowing throws oil particles into the air (UC pest management program). |
| Scotch broom | Cut low and hauled. | We cut it. We do not spray anything. |
| Trees and low limbs | Small trees taken out, and limbs cut to at least 6 feet off the ground. | CAL FIRE asks for tree limbs at least 6 feet up in the 30 to 100 foot zone, so a ground fire cannot climb into the tree. |
Brush clearing before and after
Our own photos of one fence-line job west of Sonora, before we started and after we finished. They show the same slope but were not taken from the exact same spot.
Dead brush and low limbs cleared along a fence. A tangle of dead branches and brush under the oaks along a fence, cut, hauled and raked so the slope is open again. West of Sonora, July 2026.
On the job
How does a brush clearing job go?
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Call or send the form
Tell us where the property is and what has grown up. We call back the same day, usually within the hour.
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We walk it with you
Usually within a day or two. We look at the slope, the brush and where a trailer can park, in person or on the phone.
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One written price
By the job, with hauling and dump fees in it, or a day rate if your project suits one. Nothing starts until you say yes.
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Cut, cleared, photographed
We cut, chip or haul, rake up and send you before and after photos. You pay when the job is done.
How much does brush clearing cost?
Brush clearing is priced by the job, not by the hour. We walk the property and give you one written price before we start, with hauling and dump fees in it. Some projects suit a flat day rate instead: a crew and the gear the work needs for the whole day. The estimate is free either way.
Some projects
By the day: a crew and gear, one flat rate
A crew for the day with brush cutters, chainsaws, trailers, our Bobcat and the chipper when the work needs them. We get as much done as we can in the day.
What moves the price of brush clearing
- How much brush there is, and how woody: chainsaw work costs more than grass
- Slope and rock, which slow hand work down
- How close a trailer or the chipper can get to the brush
- Whether it is chipped, hauled or stacked for your burn
- Poison oak, which is cut in protective gear and bagged by hand
For worked examples, see our 2026 guide to brush clearing cost in Sonora.
They cleared around my trees, took care of a couple hillsides, and did the full perimeter. Got it all done at a reasonable price.
A 5-star Google review of our crew, quoted word for word and shortened.
What happens to the brush after it is cut?
You choose. We chip it on site, haul it away with the dump fees in the price, or stack it for you to burn on a permitted burn day. Burning is suspended through fire season, so summer and fall jobs are chipped or hauled.
| Option | How it works | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Chipped on site | We bring in the chipper and feed the brush through it. The chips can be spread on the property or hauled. | Chips stay out of the first five feet around the house, where CAL FIRE advises against wood mulch. |
| Hauled away | Loaded on our wood-sided trailers and taken to Cal Sierra's green waste site on Camage Avenue in Sonora. | The site charges by the load, and that fee is in our price. It does not take tree stumps. |
| Stacked for your burn | Cut and stacked in piles 4 feet across or smaller, the largest a CAL FIRE permit allows. | You need a CAL FIRE burn permit, and since May 2024 a county air district permit for hazard reduction burns. The permit asks for 10 feet of bare dirt around each pile and someone there with water and a shovel. Burn only on a permissive burn day: call (209) 533-5598. |
Fresh brush has to dry before it burns clean: three to six weeks for pieces under 6 inches across, longer for thicker wood. Poison oak is never stacked for a burn. In 2026 CAL FIRE suspended residential burning at every elevation on June 15, and on October 17 that suspension was still in force.
Why do we clear steep ground by hand?
Most of the brush around Sonora grows on slopes, rock and tight spots where a mower or a machine cannot work safely. A hand crew with brush cutters and chainsaws can, and it leaves the soil where it is.
How we work in fire season
- Plastic cutting line on the ground, so no metal blade strikes a rock and throws a spark
- Pressurized water on site on every job
- A spark arrester on every engine, as California's PRC 4442 requires on brush and grass land
- Dry grass cut early, before 10 a.m., and never on a hot or windy day, as CAL FIRE advises
The state's defensible space guidelines ask for as little soil disturbance as possible, especially on steep slopes, and no clearing to bare soil near streams. Cutting by hand does that: the roots stay in the ground and keep holding the slope.
Where do we clear brush?
We are based in Sonora and do brush clearing across Tuolumne County, from the oak hills around Jamestown and Columbia up Highway 108 to Twain Harte and Mi-Wuk Village, and over the county line into Calaveras County.
Keep reading
- Defensible space rules in Sonora and Tuolumne CountyWhat the state, the city and the county each ask for, with sources
- Brush clearing cost in SonoraOur 2026 pricing guide: what moves the price and how to get a firm quote
- Defensible Space ClearingThe 100-foot fire clearance CAL FIRE inspects
- Lot and Land ClearingVacant lots, acreage, fence lines and fire breaks
- All of our brush clearing servicesThe three services side by side, and the smaller jobs we take on the same visit
Brush clearing questions
Question not here? Call us and tell us what has grown up.
Call (209) 243-5574How long does a brush clearing job take?
A backyard pile takes an hour or two. Most homes take one day. A steep lot with heavy brush that needs chainsaw work can take several days, and we tell you which it is when we walk the property and give you the written price.
Do you remove poison oak?
Yes. The crew cuts it in protective gear, bags it and hauls it away, and cleans the tools after. We never burn or mow poison oak: UC's pest management program warns that burning carries its oil in the smoke and mowing throws oil particles into the air.
Can you clear brush on a steep hillside?
Yes, much of our work is on slopes. Steep and rocky ground is cut by hand with brush cutters and chainsaws, and the cut brush is carried or dragged to where the trailer or the chipper can reach it. Slope adds time, and the written price allows for it.
Do you take out trees?
Small trees and low limbs, yes, in the same written price as the rest of the job. A big tree that needs a climber goes to a licensed tree service we recommend, and we point those out when we walk the property.
Do you dig out roots or grind stumps?
Yes. We grind stumps and dig out roots where you want them gone, and our Bobcat handles digging and grading. On a steep slope we often suggest leaving the roots in, since they help hold the ground together, and we talk that through when we walk the property.
Does every manzanita have to come out?
No. California's rules allow well-pruned, well-spaced plants, and the state's guidelines treat a clump of shrubs under 10 feet across as one plant. We thin and space manzanita and other shrubs to the gaps your slope needs instead of clearing everything.
How long does brush clearing last?
Grass grows back every year, so the 100 feet around a house needs a cut each spring. Brush cut to the ground comes back more slowly, though blackberry sprouts again from its roots, so a lighter follow-up cut keeps it down. We can set that date when the job is done.
Get a free brush clearing estimate
Tell us where the property is and what needs clearing. We call you back the same day, usually within the hour, and set a time to walk it with you, in person or on the phone if you are out of the area.
- Call (209) 243-5574Monday to Friday 7 AM to 6 PM, Saturday 8 AM to 4 PM