The sabal by our driveway is the state tree. Are we even allowed to take it out?

Florida Statute 15.031 names the sabal palmetto the state tree, and its second subsection says the designation doesn't limit commercial use of the palm. The statute sets no removal rule for a home lot. What does apply is the City's tree permit, which goes by trunk size, so ask the City's Building Department or the tree company whether your palm needs one before the cut.

Palm Tree Removal in Palm Coast, FL

Palm Tree Removal by Palm and Setting

Tall sabal palm with a round crown standing beside a single-story stucco house, its lower trunk showing the crisscross pattern of old frond bases

Taking Down a Sabal (Cabbage) Palm

The sabal, or cabbage palm, is Florida's state tree under Florida Statute 15.031 and a native that grows a thick, heavy trunk. Height sets most of the price, and HomeGuide notes that taller palms need bigger equipment and more safety work.

Trunk 10 to 16 inches across, height up to 40 feet (UF/IFAS)
Palms 15 to 30 feet: about $150 to $450; 30 to 60 feet: $200 to $900 (HomeGuide, national)

Queen palm with a slim gray trunk and drooping brown cold-damaged fronds in a backyard next to a screened pool enclosure

Removing a Queen Palm

UF/IFAS describes queen palms as fast growers that don't drop their dead fronds on their own and won't always come through a cold winter.

Trunk up to about 50 feet tall (UF/IFAS)
A regularly trimmed palm has fewer loose fronds and is easier to take down (HomeGuide)

Palm trunk section lowered on a rope beside a screened pool enclosure, gloved hands guiding the line, cut fronds piled on the lawn

Palms Beside the Roof, Pool Cage or Fence

HomeGuide notes that a palm close to a building, power lines or a fence needs ropes or pulleys to bring it down safely, which adds labor time. Palms with a wide trunk, a big spread or a spiny crown cost the most to take out.

Several palms in one visit lower the price per palm (HomeGuide)

Diseased Palms

A palm with Ganoderma conks on the trunk or a positive lethal bronzing test has to come out, and the stump and the planting spot need handling afterwards. The palm tree disease page covers both, including whether a new palm can go back in the same place.

Freshly ground palm stump in sandy soil next to a pool deck, a ring of fibrous palm roots and a small pile of grindings around it

Grinding the Stump and Clearing the Roots

A palm leaves both a stump and its roots behind. Grinding is the simplest way to get rid of the stump; digging the roots out is billed by the hour. Grinding disturbs the soil, so the grinder should call 811 first.

Palm stump grinding: about $100 to $250 (HomeGuide)
Root removal: $75 to $150 an hour, usually 1 to 2 hours
Topsoil to fill the hole: $10 to $50 a cubic yard

Gloved hand cutting a dead brown frond off a sabal palm with a curved pruning saw, green fronds left on the crown above

Why Palm Coast homeowners, HOAs and property managers call Palm Coast Tree Service

Each request goes to just one tree company
Free to use; you pay only for work you sign off on
Ask for an estimate that lists cleanup and hauling
Ask to see liability and workers' comp proof

Palm Removal Quotes: Stump, Trunk Wood and the Permit

Ask for the palm, the stump, the roots and the hauling as four separate lines. HomeGuide puts hauling away palm wood at $200 to $300; on a one-line quote you can't tell whether it's included.

Before booking, ask whether the palm's trunk size triggers the City's tree permit; the tree removal page explains the threshold and the hiring checks worth running on any crew. If the palm is healthy and only looks ragged, compare the price of a proper palm trim first. If it's healthy and only in the wrong spot, moving it to another part of the yard is covered under tree planting.