Fiskars saw for green wood
Updated: 21 October 2026
The branch is still green, the kerf is sticky, and you are not sure the tree is yours to cut. A Fiskars saw for green wood, in this set, is the listing whose bullets say fresh wood or thick branches, not the finest tooth in the toolbox. Check the tree before you check the tooth. Lopping a garden stem is often outside a felling licence and still inside a tree preservation order, a conservation-area notice, and the law on nests. Prices sit on the [Fiskars saw comparison](/hub/power-saws/fiskars-saw). Shape and stroke, before you are at the tree, are the [buying guide](/hub/power-saws/fiskars-saw/sub/fiskars-saw-buying-guide). Peter F. used the amazon.co.uk raw files of 19 October 2026 and public UK guidance. This is not a lab test. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
The branch is still green, the kerf is sticky, and you are not sure the tree is yours to cut.
The branch is still green, the kerf is sticky, and you are not sure the tree is yours to cut. A Fiskars saw for green wood, in this set, is the listing whose bullets say fresh wood or thick branches, not the finest tooth in the toolbox. Check the tree before you check the tooth. Lopping a garden stem is often outside a felling licence and still inside a tree preservation order, a conservation-area notice, and the law on nests. Prices sit on the Fiskars saw comparison. Shape and stroke, before you are at the tree, are the buying guide. Peter F. used the amazon.co.uk raw files of 19 October 2026 and public UK guidance. This is not a lab test. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Stated job | Tooth | Stroke | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Fiskars Fiskars SW-240 pruning saw | Fresh wood | Coarse | Pull | 7.0 | about £76.72 | View offer |
| Best value |  Fiskars Fiskars 15 inch PowerTooth saw | Large branches | PowerTooth | Pull and push | 7.6 | about £49.53 | View offer |
 Fiskars Fiskars SW31 bow saw | Damp wood | 168 teeth | Not in the bullets | 8.4 | about £20.35 | View offer |
On this page
Which listing is actually for fresh wood
The SW-240 is the row that says it. Article 1020200, £76.72, is a curved pruning saw with coarse teeth, a pulling cut, and a case in the title and the box field. The bullets name fresh wood, for example branches, hedges and bushes. The listing is 4.8 from 127, with no UK review text. Other reviews say wet fresh wood cuts faster than dry older wood, and one reviewer stayed around 10 to 15 cm. That is not a rated capacity. The contents line says 24 cm and the attribute row says 22 cm. Two 15 inch saws talk about branches without the words fresh wood. Model 393440-1001, at £49.53, says a PowerTooth blade for large branches and undercuts, on the pull and the push. It is 4.7 from 722, with written reviews from outside the UK. Model 393440, at £54.09, says thick branches and is hand powered. Its bullets do not state the stroke, and the box field says tree pruner. They are not the same model. The SW-240 remains the one whose bullets name fresh wood and a case. The Pro folder is not that pick. At £42 it is 25 cm and 13 TPI, for softwood, squared timber and PVC. A reviewer said the thin blade is a poor match for fresh wood, and others say it twists if you force it. The SW31 title says damp wood. That is the log tool, and the contrast is on the bow saw vs pruning saw page.
Why coarse teeth matter
Fresh wood carries sap. A fine tooth packs with that sap, and the blade stalls even when it was sharp in dry timber. Coarse teeth take a bigger chip and clear the kerf. In this set the principle lands on the SW-240 bullets: coarse teeth and fresh wood. The folder's 13 TPI is the other end, and the bullets already point it at softwood and PVC. You still let the teeth cut. On the SW-240 that means the pulling stroke, without loading the return. On 393440-1001 the listing allows pull and push. Forcing a gummed kerf is how a cut goes crooked and how a thin folder twists. None of these files print a maximum green diameter. A reviewer's 10 to 15 cm, or about 4 to 6 inches on the 15 inch saw, is a comment. The undercut and the collar, once you may cut, are on the how to use a Fiskars pruning saw page.
Licence, tree orders and nests
Lopping is not felling. Section 9 of the Forestry Act 1967 requires a licence to fell growing trees, with exceptions that include topping and lopping, gardens, orchards, fruit trees, and stems not over 8 cm in diameter, or 15 cm for coppice. The Forestry Commission tells you to prove the exception. If you are felling rather than lopping, check before you start. An English tree preservation order still prohibits lopping without written consent, unless an exception applies. A conservation-area tree often needs a section 211 notice. GOV.UK's works-to-trees application covers England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland are not that form. Ask the council where the tree stands. It is an offence to damage a wild bird's nest that is in use or being built. GOV.UK puts the usual nesting window at 1 March to 31 August. That is when you should look hardest. It is not a ban on every other day, and it is not permission inside the window if a nest is there.
Stay on the ground
The Health and Safety Executive wants low branches cut from the ground, not with you under the limb. None of these listings is a chainsaw, whatever the voltage row says, and a pole-saw head is not in this comparison. If the branch is above you, a coarse tooth does not make a ladder safe. Overhead lines, a hung-up stem and storm damage are the same stop. Call someone equipped for that work. If the tree is unprotected, the nest is absent, and the branch is in reach, then the saw matters. Use the SW-240 when you want the fresh-wood sentence and a case, and accept the price and the missing UK review text. Use the 15 inch pull-and-push saw when the branch is thicker and you want that stroke in writing. Leave the 13 TPI folder for the dry softwood and PVC in its bullets. Leave the SW31 for the log once the branch is down. If the council, the nest or the height says no, the saw stays in the case.
Common questions
Which Fiskars saw is for live branches?
The SW-240, because the bullets say fresh wood, coarse teeth, a pulling cut and a case, at £76.72 in the raw file. The 15 inch PowerTooth listings are the alternative for large or thick branches, and they do not use the words fresh wood. There is no UK review text for the SW-240 in the file. A comment of about 10 to 15 cm is one reviewer's experience, not a Fiskars capacity.
Is the folding 13 TPI saw for green wood?
The bullets do not say so. They name softwood, squared timber and PVC, on a flexible 25 cm blade at £42. Reviews, not from the UK, say it twists if you force it and that the thin blade is a poor match for fresh wood. Fine teeth also pack with sap. Use the folder for the materials in the bullets, and a coarse pruning blade for live branches.
Do I need a felling licence to lop?
Topping and lopping do not need a felling licence under the Forestry Act 1967, section 9. Gardens, orchards, fruit trees, and stems not over 8 cm, or 15 cm for coppice, are among the other exceptions. You need to show that the exception applies. Cutting the tree down is a different question from taking a branch. If you are unsure which you are doing, check with the Forestry Commission before you start.
Do I need council consent?
You do if an English tree preservation order covers the tree, unless an exception applies, because lopping then needs written consent. A conservation-area tree often needs a section 211 notice. The GOV.UK application is for England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland use their own routes. A garden setting does not cancel a preservation order.
Can I prune in summer?
You can if you have looked and there is no nest in use or being built. The usual nesting window is 1 March to 31 August, which is when nests are most likely, not a calendar that replaces a look. Damaging a nest in use is an offence on any date. Summer is also when sap is high, so a coarse tooth is the more sensible blade if the legal check is already clear.
How thick a green branch is realistic?
The files do not state a maximum. One non-UK review of the SW-240 talks about 10 to 15 cm, and non-UK reviews of the 15 inch saw talk about limbs around 4 to 6 inches. Those are comments, not specifications. A blade in the 24 cm class is for branches, not for a trunk. If the stem is a small tree you must support, you have left this page for the bow saw.
When is a hand saw the wrong tool?
When the branch is above you, when you would stand under it, when lines are close, or when a preservation order, a conservation area or a nest has not been checked. Also when the work is felling rather than lopping you can justify. HSE wants the low cut done from the ground. A coarse tooth does not change the height, the wire or the council's answer.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources and the Fiskars UK Xtract page, plus the amazon.co.uk listings compared here. Listings captured on 19 October 2026.
- Forestry Act 1967, section 9 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Forestry Commission: when you do not need a felling licence (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Tree preservation orders and trees in conservation areas (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Wild birds, protection, surveys and licences (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Countryside hedgerows, regulation and management (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- HSE: Arboriculture (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Consumer Rights Act 2015, what statutory rights are there under a goods contract (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Fiskars UK: Xtract garden saw L SW75 (retrieved 19 October 2026)