Several self-sown Blackwood trees were cut and pruned along Manikato Dr in Drouin last Tuesday morning.
Baw Baw Shire Council interim chief executive officer John Bennie said the self-sown trees were cut to preserve the health of a number of council asset plane trees.
"Our team ensured care was taken to only remove dead trees and any trees that were actively suppressing the growth of our council assets," he said. "This included pruning a number of trees instead of removing them."
Some local residents expressed their frustration at not being notified of the works and were saddened by the removal of a large blackwood tree that they said acted as a wind break.
"Residents were not notified of the works as they were removing self-sown trees for the maintenance of council assets at a public, open space location that was not adjacent to any occupied properties," Mr Bennie said.