Pine removal and bark beetles on the Grand Strand
Loblolly and longleaf pines are the tallest things in every Strand subdivision, and the ones that die — beetles, lightning, a storm, a new driveway next door — fall toward the house. Red needles mean now; gray needles mean before the next storm.
The Grand Strand was pine flatwoods before it was subdivisions, and the builders left the pines: 80-foot loblollies and longleafs over the houses of Carolina Forest, Forestbrook, Burgess, the Little River corner and every neighborhood built since 1980 in Horry County. A healthy pine on the Strand is a reasonable tree — longleaf is the most wind- and drought-tolerant pine we have, and loblolly is fine until something stresses it. The something is usually one of four things: lightning (South Carolina ranks 13th in the country for strikes, and the pine is the tallest target in the yard), drought, a storm that racks the roots loose in saturated sand, or construction next door — a trencher for a new driveway or utility line cuts a third of a pine's shallow roots, and the stressed tree draws beetles within the season.
The beetles are the South Carolina Forestry Commission's two usual suspects: Ips engraver beetles, which hit lightning-, fire- and storm-damaged pines and leave dime-sized creamy-to-red pitch tubes or red boring dust in the bark crevices, and black turpentine beetles, which work the lower twelve feet of the trunk and leave quarter-sized reddish-purple pitch tubes. A pine with beetles is dead whether its needles have turned yet or not. The rule of thumb: green or red needles with pitch tubes means remove it now, before the beetles emerge into the next pine; gray needles with the bark sloughing off means the beetles are gone and the tree is simply a hazard that will drop limbs for a year and then go over. Either way it should come down before hurricane season, and on the Strand's narrow lots that usually means rigging it down in sections or lifting it out by crane over the pool. One piece of good news: North Myrtle Beach exempts pines of any size from its permit, Georgetown County exempts every pine but longleaf, and Myrtle Beach only regulates pines over 18 inches on non-residential lots — so a dead pine on a house lot is almost never a permit problem.
What's included
Needle-color assessment
Green with pitch tubes, red, or gray — each means something different about timing and beetles.
Lightning-strike evaluation
A spiral scar down the trunk versus a single scar: which strikes kill and which don't.
Rigged or craned down
Tall pines over pools and roofs taken in sections; crane when there's no drop zone.
Salvage before spread
Beetle-infested wood chipped and hauled promptly so the brood doesn't emerge into the neighbors' pines.
Permit check
Pines are exempt in North Myrtle Beach and most of the Strand on house lots; we confirm your town.
Stump grinding
Ground below grade with 811 marked first; pine stumps rot fast if you'd rather leave them.
Pine removal cost in Myrtle Beach, SC
| Job | Typical price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Dead pine, under 40 ft, open access | $400 – $900 | Felled or sectioned |
| Dead pine, 40–70 ft, rigged over structure | $900 – $2,000 | Most subdivision loblollies |
| Tall pine, 70 ft and up, by crane | $2,500 – $5,000 | Over pools and roofs; several share one crane day |
| Lightning-struck pine assessment | Free with estimate | We'll tell you whether to wait or act |
| Pine stump grinding | $3 – $5 per inch | $100–$150 minimum |
These are 2026 Grand Strand ranges so you can budget. Your written price is itemized — the climb or bucket work, rigging, chipping and haul-off, stump grinding, crane time, the permit for your town — and good for 30 days.
Recent work
Questions we get about pine removal
How do I know it's beetles?
Look at the bark from the ground up to about twelve feet: popcorn-sized blobs of pitch, white to red, and reddish sawdust in the crevices. If the needles are already red, you don't need to look — it's dead, and the only question is whether the beetles are still inside.
A pine was hit by lightning in July and looks fine.
Watch it. A strike that spiraled the bark off is usually fatal within a year; a single narrow scar sometimes isn't. Pitch tubes or fading needles mean beetles found it. We'll look at it free and tell you whether to wait.
Why do the pines die after a neighbor builds?
Root damage. A loblolly's roots spread wide and shallow in our sand, and a trencher cuts a third of them. If a new house is going in next to your pines, water them through the construction and watch the bark.
Do I need a permit to remove a pine?
In North Myrtle Beach, never. In Georgetown County, only for longleaf over 10 inches. In Myrtle Beach, not on a single-family lot. Horry County's protected-species list for house lots is live oaks only. Conway regulates oaks and listed hardwoods, not pines. So almost never — but we check.
What does a 90-foot pine over the pool cost?
By crane, $2,500–$5,000. If you have three of them, the crane day is shared and the per-tree price drops. See crane work.