Terms and Conditions
Last updated: September 24, 2026
Welcome to Tree & Shrub Guide. The terms below apply when you access our website, read our articles, use our resources, or interact with any features available on the site.
Tree & Shrub Guide publishes educational and editorial content about trees, shrubs, landscape plants, plant care, pruning, soil, pests, diseases, invasive species, regional suitability, and related horticultural topics.
By using the website, you agree to comply with these Terms and Conditions. If you do not accept them, please stop using the website.
1. About Tree & Shrub Guide
Tree & Shrub Guide provides practical information for homeowners, gardeners, plant enthusiasts, and readers who want reliable guidance about woody plants and residential landscapes.
Our content may include species profiles, cultivar comparisons, planting advice, pruning guidance, seasonal recommendations, regional considerations, plant health information, landscape ideas, and commentary based on horticultural experience and published sources.
The website provides general educational information. It does not provide individualized professional services unless a separate written agreement expressly states otherwise.
2. Rules for Using the Website
You may access Tree & Shrub Guide for lawful personal use and for other purposes permitted by applicable law.
You must not:
- Reproduce or republish complete articles or substantial portions of original content without permission.
- Systematically extract website material through bots, scrapers, automated tools, or similar systems without authorization.
- Attempt unauthorized access to restricted areas, servers, databases, or user accounts.
- Introduce malware, harmful code, or other material intended to disrupt the website.
- Remove copyright notices, credits, trademarks, or ownership information.
- Falsely suggest that Tree & Shrub Guide sponsors, approves, or is affiliated with you.
- Use the website for unlawful, fraudulent, deceptive, or harmful purposes.
You may share links to our articles and quote reasonable portions where permitted by law, provided that attribution is accurate and the original meaning is not misrepresented.
3. Gardening and Landscape Information
Plant performance depends on many conditions that vary between properties and regions.
Climate, soil, drainage, sunlight, rainfall, irrigation, humidity, wind, planting technique, maintenance, pests, and diseases can all affect how a tree or shrub performs.
Information published on Tree & Shrub Guide should therefore be treated as general guidance rather than a guarantee of a particular result.
We cannot guarantee plant survival, growth rate, flowering, mature size, appearance, health, structural stability, or suitability for a specific property.
Readers remain responsible for assessing their own conditions before acting on information published on the website.
4. Regional Suitability and Plant Restrictions
Hardiness zones provide useful guidance, but they cannot account for every environmental condition that affects plant performance.
A species described as suitable for a particular region may still perform poorly at an individual site because of soil, drainage, heat, drought, wind, microclimate, or other local factors.
Tree & Shrub Guide may also discuss invasive, restricted, regulated, or prohibited plants.
Plant laws and official classifications may differ between countries, states, counties, municipalities, and other jurisdictions. Rules may also change after an article has been published.
Before purchasing, propagating, transporting, selling, or planting a species that may be regulated, check current requirements issued by the appropriate local or government authority.
Our content does not constitute legal confirmation that a plant may lawfully be used in your location.
5. Plant Identification and Health Information
Identification of trees, shrubs, pests, diseases, nutrient deficiencies, and plant disorders can involve uncertainty.
Different species can share similar visible characteristics. Disease, insects, weather damage, nutrient problems, and environmental stress can also produce similar symptoms.
Information on Tree & Shrub Guide may help readers identify possible causes, but it should not automatically be treated as a definitive diagnosis.
When accurate identification affects treatment, pesticide use, plant toxicity, legal status, tree removal, or personal safety, seek confirmation through a qualified professional or local diagnostic service.
6. Pruning, Tree Work, and Property Risks
Tree and shrub work can involve risks to people and property.
Pruning, branch removal, root disturbance, excavation, climbing, chainsaw use, storm-damaged trees, and work near utilities may require specialist knowledge and equipment.
Articles that discuss such subjects provide general information only. They do not constitute a site inspection, structural assessment, or professional work plan.
General planting-distance advice also cannot account for every foundation, wall, drain, sewer, utility line, fence, neighboring property, or site condition.
For hazardous work or situations with significant structural, financial, or safety consequences, consult an appropriately qualified professional.
7. Treatments, Pesticides, and Product Use
Tree & Shrub Guide may discuss fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, fungicides, insecticides, soil amendments, biological controls, and other plant treatments.
Product regulations, registrations, labels, and permitted uses may vary according to location and may change over time.
Always follow the current product label and applicable law.
Official product instructions and regulatory requirements take precedence over general information published on Tree & Shrub Guide.
Where the cause of a plant problem is uncertain, obtain an accurate diagnosis before applying treatment.
8. Editorial Accuracy and Updates
We take reasonable care when researching, writing, reviewing, and maintaining our articles.
Sources may include university extension programs, scientific publications, government agencies, botanical institutions, recognized horticultural organizations, plant databases, nurseries, manufacturers, and other relevant resources.
Authors may also share observations based on direct horticultural, nursery, gardening, or landscape experience.
Botanical classifications, regulations, invasive-species designations, scientific recommendations, cultivar information, and product guidance can change.
We therefore cannot guarantee that every article will remain complete, current, error-free, or suitable for every reader.
Content may be corrected, revised, expanded, replaced, or removed when appropriate.
More information about our editorial approach is available in our Editorial Policy.
9. No Professional Relationship
Access to Tree & Shrub Guide does not establish a professional relationship between a reader and Tree & Shrub Guide, its owner, authors, contributors, or editors.
Reading an article, submitting a comment, sending a question, or receiving a response does not create an arborist-client, horticulturist-client, landscaper-client, contractor-client, attorney-client, or comparable professional relationship.
Any information supplied through the website remains general unless a separate written agreement expressly provides otherwise.
10. Copyright and Intellectual Property
Unless another owner is identified, original content published on Tree & Shrub Guide is owned by Tree & Shrub Guide or used with appropriate permission.
Protected material may include articles, photographs, illustrations, graphics, logos, branding, layouts, and other original website content.
You may read, reference, and share links to our material for lawful personal use.
Reasonable quotations may be used where permitted by law and accompanied by appropriate attribution.
You may not reproduce complete articles, systematically copy substantial portions of the website, or commercially use protected photographs, graphics, or other original material without prior permission unless applicable law permits such use.
11. Advertising, Affiliate Links, and Commercial References
Tree & Shrub Guide may display advertising or publish content that contains affiliate links, sponsorships, commercial references, or brand partnerships.
If you make a purchase through an affiliate link, Tree & Shrub Guide may receive a commission without additional cost to you.
Commercial relationships do not guarantee favorable editorial treatment.
References to products, nurseries, tools, services, manufacturers, or sellers do not guarantee quality, suitability, availability, performance, or value.
Transactions with third parties are governed by their own terms and policies.
Tree & Shrub Guide is not responsible for third-party pricing, stock, shipping, plant condition, warranties, refunds, returns, customer service, or contractual performance.
12. External Websites and Services
Our articles may link to research papers, universities, government agencies, botanical institutions, nurseries, retailers, manufacturers, professional organizations, videos, and other third-party websites.
Such links may be provided as references, supporting resources, or conveniences.
A link does not mean that Tree & Shrub Guide accepts responsibility for all content, products, or services available through the external website.
We do not control third-party websites and cannot guarantee their accuracy, availability, security, privacy practices, or continued operation.
Readers who visit external websites are subject to the terms and policies of those providers.
13. Comments, Images, and Reader Submissions
Tree & Shrub Guide may allow visitors to submit comments, questions, photographs, or other material.
You are responsible for material you submit.
Submitted material must not violate another person’s rights, contain unlawful or defamatory content, include spam or harmful code, impersonate another person, or disclose private information without authorization.
We may review, moderate, edit, refuse, restrict, or remove submitted material when appropriate.
You retain ownership of original material you submit.
By submitting material for publication or display, you grant Tree & Shrub Guide a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to host, reproduce, format, display, distribute, and archive that material as reasonably necessary to operate the website.
You confirm that you have the right to submit the material and grant that permission.
14. Privacy and Website Availability
Tree & Shrub Guide may process information connected with website visits, comments, contact forms, media uploads, account functions, cookies, analytics, advertising, or embedded content.
Details about personal information, cookies, retention, third-party services, and privacy rights are provided in our Privacy Policy.
We aim to keep the website available and functional, but uninterrupted access cannot be guaranteed.
Access may be affected by maintenance, hosting problems, security incidents, software errors, third-party services, or circumstances outside our control.
We may modify, suspend, restrict, replace, or discontinue any section, feature, or article when appropriate.
15. Limitation of Liability
Readers remain responsible for decisions made after consulting Tree & Shrub Guide.
To the extent permitted by applicable law, Tree & Shrub Guide, its owner, authors, contributors, editors, and associated parties will not be liable for losses or damages caused by reliance on general information published on the website.
Such losses may include plant loss, poor plant performance, pest or disease damage, property damage, landscaping costs, treatment costs, root-related damage, utility damage, injury, regulatory consequences, purchasing losses, or issues connected with third-party products and services.
Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability that cannot legally be excluded or limited.
16. Changes, Applicable Law, and Contact
We may revise these Terms and Conditions to reflect changes to the website, our editorial practices, commercial activity, technical features, or legal requirements.
The date at the top of this page will indicate the most recent revision.
If any provision is found to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue to apply where permitted by law.
These Terms and Conditions are governed by the laws of [insert the jurisdiction where the website operator is legally established], subject to any mandatory rights that apply under relevant law.
Questions about these Terms, copyright permissions, content concerns, or legal notices may be sent through the contact information published on Tree & Shrub Guide.