The Australian cyclone season runs November to April, and the Douglas Shire sits squarely in it. The single most useful thing you can do for your property is unglamorous: get the yard cut back early, while it is still a scheduling decision rather than an emergency.
The reason is simple. Once a cyclone warning is issued, everyone calls at once, the green waste facilities back up, and nobody is going to be up a ladder trimming your trees in a rising wind. Whatever state your yard is in when the warning lands is broadly the state it stays in.
What causes damage
In a strong blow, most property damage is not the wind itself — it is what the wind picks up and throws.
Dead and hanging limbs. Anything already dead is already loose. These come down first and travel furthest.
Overextended growth. Long, whippy new growth acts like a sail. Branches that have run away since the last wet catch far more wind than compact, well-shaped growth.
Palm fronds. Dead or dying fronds still attached to the trunk are heavy, stiff, and edged. They are among the more dangerous things in a tropical yard.
Loose yard material. Offcuts, old pots, unsecured furniture, stacked green waste awaiting a tip run. A pile of prunings left beside the shed is worse than no pruning at all.
The checklist
Working through this in September or October puts you well ahead:
- Remove all dead wood. Anything dead, split, or clearly failing comes out first.
- Reduce, do not top. Cutting the height off a tree produces a flush of weak regrowth that is more vulnerable next season, not less. Selective thinning that lets wind pass through is the goal.
- Clear the dead fronds. Palms should be tidied of anything brown and hanging.
- Cut boundaries back off structures. Branches overhanging a roof, touching a fence, or resting on a shed will do damage as they move.
- Get the green waste gone. This is the step people skip. Cutting material and leaving it on site relocates the hazard rather than removing it.
- Check what is near the gutters. Overhanging growth is also what fills your gutters through the wet — see our wet-season gutter guide.
A note on big trees
There is a real limit to what handyman-grade pruning should cover. Large trees, anything near powerlines, and anything requiring climbing or a chainsaw at height belong with a qualified arborist. Tony will tell you when a job is outside that line rather than take it on — that judgement matters more than the quote.
Timing
Aim for September through early October. Late enough that regrowth after the wet has been dealt with, early enough that you are not competing with everyone else's panic.
Properties in the Daintree should treat this as non-negotiable. Regrowth rates there are the highest in the Shire, and access after a serious event can be slow.
If your yard needs cutting back before the season, hedging and pruning is charged hourly or as a fixed project price, and green waste removal can be done in the same visit.