serving Asheville and surrounding areas

Invasives choking out your trees? We advocate non-chemical removal, because we love bees as much as we love trees. We offer onsite removal of invasive plants and refer arborists, as needed, to ensure your trees get the best care possible. We offer mulching after removal, as well as planting of native plants to help reclaim the land. The native plants we install are specially selected based on several factors, including their benefits to wildlife. We care about our pollinators and the wildlife who share the land.

Interested in doing the work yourself? We'll come out and share everything we've learned about removing invasives safely from your trees and other plants. Contact Raven today for details.

• Invasive plant removal
• Invasive plant management
• Invasive plant management consulting
• Mulching
• Planting of native, beneficial plants
• Landscaping services

A member of Haw Creek Heights HOA had this to say about Raven:

"Your crew was here today to help the common area of my homeowners' association which had long been neglected.
The work that you and your crew accomplished was beyond transformative!
Not only does the common area look more vibrant, peaceful and beautiful than it ever has, the many trees you had freed of choking and insidious vines will now have a chance to thrive and live the healthy lives they deserve.
Your crew members were thorough, efficient, quiet and conscientious.
As a homeowner in this community, I could not have asked for a better experience.
Many times, service providers will come to the HOA and create so much head-splitting noise and disruption to daily life that I find myself just praying for them to leave!
I found myself appreciating the presence of your crew for every minute they were working on the common area. I could see the invasive growth getting pulled out from the ground and removed from the trees.
You have beautified my community and given life and hope back to the majestic trees.
I am indebted and supremely grateful."

"I just returned from a trip, and want to say that we're so pleased with the job you're doing. I can almost feel the trees breathing a sigh of relief!" -Scott

"Marsha brought a crew down from Asheville to my home in Greenville, and over a day they transformed my wooded mess of an area into a beautiful space. I really appreciated her taking the time to educate me on some of the invasive species that are overrunning my property, and the care she takes not to cause any harm to the beneficial plants and insects. There was more work to be done than could be completed in a day, and I will definitely be contacting Marsha again for future work and maintenance of the area. Thank you Marsha and thanks to your crew for an amazing job!" -Ashley

"We had tons of poison ivy growing in our front flower bed and starting to spread into the grass. We called several companies and no one wanted to touch it. Marsha came in and removed several ivy bushes, all the runners from the grass, as well as other non-natives from the flower bed over a couple of days. Pricing was fair and she was forthright about how long she thought it would take. She was professional and communicative. I can't wait to have her back to clean up some of our other flower beds and swale area. I highly recommend her service." -Adel

Dan S. from Kenilworth

"Marsha has been to my place slaying ivy a couple of times and I'm extremely happy with the results!"

Diane S. from Kenilworth

"I just had help from Marsha and her crew of hard workers from Asheville Invasive Plant Removal and Landscaping. They took down the poison ivy from my plant bed. They pulled the plants by the roots. I am so pleased with the outcome. I’d highly recommend this business."

Robert S. from Albemarle Park

"What a great new specialist service! They have been excellent at responding and communicating, showing up as scheduled, and doing what was agreed upon. With an interest in learning more ways to improve methods and expand the service for greater impact in the area, they are dedicated to the cause of English ivy and Invasives removal."

Reggie G. from Biltmore Forest

"I've removed the Ivy from my trees several years ago, but keep the English Ivy as ground cover. The Ivy has been growing right back up into my trees over the last several years. Since I am not around my house in Asheville, especially in winter and spring, I hired Marsha to come over and remove the Ivy from my trees. She did a much better job than I ever did in removing the Ivy from my trees. The climate warming we are experiencing is causing these invasive plants to grow faster and will damage our beautiful tress around Asheville. I highly recommend this new business for our beautiful city, to fix a growing problem. If you've got trees with Ivy growing up into them or Ivy growing up the side of your house, and you can't deal with the problem yourself, this is the business to call."

Asheville's 2019 Urban Tree Canopy Study and the city's official response. 

Asheville GreenWorks Treasured Trees Program:

Treasured Trees of Asheville and Buncombe County is a program of Asheville GreenWorks whose purpose is to: 

• Bring public awareness to our valuable and irreplaceable trees.
• Increase tree owners' awareness of the unique importance of trees.
• Encourage stewardship of our urban forest.
• Protect all trees from indiscriminate removal or irreparable damage during development.
• Raise awareness of the diversity, sensitivity, and importance of the tree canopy. https://www.ashevillegreenworks.org/treasured-trees.html

From The Workshop on Linking Ecology and Horticulture To Prevent Plant Invasions, the Saint Louis Declaration  includes voluntary codes of conduct for government, nursery professionals, the gardening public (that's ALL of US,) landscape architects, and  botanic gardens and arboreta, relative to non-native invasives.

https://www.fleppc.org/FNGA/St.Louis.htm

International Union for Conservation of Nature's Issues Brief: Invasive Alien Species Climate Change

Fantastic resource for homeowners from the International Society of Arboriculture: http://www.treesaregood.org/treeowner/treeownerinformation

What Tree is That? A interactive tree ID field guide from Arbor Day Foundation: https://www.arborday.org/trees/whatTree/

Learn how to safely remove ivy from your trees, thanks to Tree Stewards of Arlington & Alexandria, VA: https://treestewards.org/take-ivy-off-trees/ 

Asheville Tree Commission's 2018 Annual Report to City Council: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1A9v72lCHXgKbzzlm27gIeFC1BvWYP4W1/view 

Publication: "The Benefits of Urban Trees: A Summary of the Benefits of Urban Trees Accompanied by a Selection of Research Papers and Pamphlets" by the Warwick District Council

Demonstrate your commitment to nature with National Wildlife Federation's Certified Wildlife Habitat program.

https://www.nwf.org/Garden-for-Wildlife/Certify

Discover and grow native plants in your yard.

https://www.nwf.org/NativePlantFinder/

Here are 40 great reasons to get rid of English ivy from Colin Purrington: https://tinyurl.com/yyfcuzx5

NC Forest Service Invasive Plants Information: 

https://www.ncforestservice.gov/forest_health/invasives.htm *Please note that while the Forestry Service recommends broad application of glyphosphate and pesticides to fight invasive plants, we DO NOT. These means are largely ineffective and unnecessarily poison our land, water and pollinators. 

Create a schoolyard (or backyard) habitat for Monarchs and other pollinators.

https://www.nwf.org/~/media/PDFs/Butterfly-Heroes/Schoolyard-Monarch-Guide.pdf

Nature Play at Home, a great resource for instilling the love of nature in children, while also getting them OUTSIDE! A joint publication of National Wildlife Federation and NC State Design.

https://www.nwf.org/~/media/PDFs/Butterfly-Heroes/BH-Nature-Guide.pdf

We love trees. We're happy to share opportunities in our communities to stand up for trees and give them the support and appreciation they deserve. Have news or an event to share? Please contact us.

Raven Invasive Plant Management Donates $1000 to Asheville GreenWorks for TREES!

When I started my business last year, I made a commitment to plant a tree for every invasive plant removal project I completed. For 2019, that amounts to about 75 trees. With a desire to do more, I decided to donate aka INVEST money instead with a local nonprofit who would help it go farther. 

In honor and gratitude to the many clients and contractors who cared enough about our Mother to invest in non-native invasive plants management last year, I donated $1,000 to Asheville GreenWorks for the purchase of 1,000 bare root saplings. They'll be cared for at GreenWorks' nursery for 3-4 years until they're given away to local residents and planted in Buncombe County soil. My request was for native trees that provide food for pollinators, wildlife and/or people. 

This is the first of an annual donation to support the health of our tree canopy.

I'm so grateful for this incredible planet and the opportunity to serve it.

Pictured here with Dawn Chavez, GreenWorks Executive Director, at the GreenWorks Nursery, where our tree babies will grow.

URGENT LOCAL ACTION ALERT:

UPDATE: In September, Asheville City Council voted unanimously to pass a Tree Canopy Protection Ordinance that will encourage property owners and developers to avoid cutting down trees. Click here to learn more.

Tree Canopy Preservation Amendment to go before Asheville City Council

From Karen MacNeil

AUG 1, 2020 — 

Dear Friends of Asheville's Urban Forest,

First, we want to thank you for your ongoing support and care for Asheville's urban forest. We are writing today to update you about the Tree Canopy Preservation Amendment scheduled to go before Asheville City Council on August 25, 2020. City staff have heard the public comments, received the signed petitions, read the letters to local newspaper editors, and acknowledged the numerous scientific studies which correlate a healthy urban forest with a healthy community. The Development Services Department and Urban Forestry Commission have worked together diligently to put forth the Tree Canopy Preservation Amendment as tangible evidence that our city is ready to value the economical (utility savings), health (cleaner air, cooler surface temperatures), infrastructure (stormwater management), and ecological (migration pathways) benefits our urban forest provides for us. Please contact Asheville City Council members and the Asheville City Manager to let them know you value the many benefits of our urban forest and passing the Tree Canopy Preservation Amendment will show that they do, too.

Mayor Esther Manheimer: esthermanheimer@avlcouncil.com
Vice Mayor Gwen Wisler: gwenwisler@avlcouncil.com
Brian Haynes: brianhaynes@avlcouncil.com
Vijay Kapoor: vijaykapoor@avlcouncil.com
Julie Mayfield: juliemayfield@avlcouncil.com
Sheneika Smith: sheneikasmith@avlcouncil.com
Keith Young: keithyoung@avlcouncil.com

Asheville City Manager: dcampbell@ashevillenc.gov

Thank you,

The Urban Forest Alliance

*For more information and supporting documents: https://www.ashevillenc.gov/department/communication-public-engagement/projects-and-initiatives/tree-canopy-protection-ordinance-amendments/

MAKE A DIFFERENCE DAILY:

It's #GoingPlasticFree July!

https://goingplasticfree.org/

We made the move to reusable contractor bags last year, because we couldn't stand to see all those black plastic bags full of ivy going into the landfill. What "small" change can you enact to make a BIG difference?

 Support healthy communities!

https://www.momsacrossamerica.com/about

https://www.organicconsumers.org/campaigns/millions-against-monsanto

Make a choice to keep toxic chemicals out of your landscape. Your "home" will be safer for you, your kids & pets, and every other form of life you share it with. 

We're chemical-free because we understand the dangers and implications of herbicides & pesticides. We stand by Moms Across America and Millions Against Monsanto. We educate potential clients, clients and neighbors about chemicals like glyphosphate.  

NEWS:

Reps introduce TREES Act to expand urban canopies

Reps. Doris Matsui, D-CA, John Sarbanes, D-MD, and Jeff Fortenberry, R-NE, introduced The Residential Energy and Economic Savings (TREES) Act this week, which would create a grant funding program at the Department of Energy (DOE) to offer homeowners or utilities free or reduced-cost tree-planting services.

ACTION ALERT! NC Senate has proposed a bill that leaves our trees in peril. If passed and enacted, the law would prohibit local governments in NC from enacting tree ordinances to protect trees on private property, We're all for property rights, however... the trees don't belong to individual property owners. They belong to all of us. They filter the air we breathe, soak up storm water, and provide for wellbeing in too many ways to list. Additionally, the state government is overstepping its bounds in this backdoor attempt to strip local citizens of their rights to enact local ordinances that make sense for OUR communities. Please review and contact your state representatives to oppose SB 367. UPDATE: SB 367 was withdrawn!

PAST EVENTS: 

March 12: Marsha attended the Tree Protection Task Force meeting hosted by Asheville GreenWorks. The all volunteer group meets monthly, and you can find the schedule here: https://www.ashevillenc.gov/departments/city_clerk/boards_n_commissions/tree_commission.htm

Climate Change and Asheville's Urban Forest
AB Tech, Ferguson Auditorium

Live Streamed on Asheville GreenWorks' Facebook page.
THURS, NOVEMBER 14TH
​5:30-7:30PM

Learn how Asheville's trees are helping to mitigate the effects of climate change and make our city more resilient. Event highlights include a review of the City of Asheville's tree canopy study and how it relates to climate resiliency.