UPDATED 11.43am: He spent 81 hours up a kauri tree in an attempt to save it from a developer's chainsaw.

Now Michael Tavares has been ordered to go through restorative justice with the property's owners.

Tavares pleaded guilty in the Waitakere District Court today to wilful trespass.

The charge was laid after he was ordered down from the Titirangi tree in April but refused, saying he wanted to save it.

The tree is still standing, and now, the court wants peace settled between Tavares and the owners.