diff --git a/lua/nvim-tree.lua b/lua/nvim-tree.lua
index 63cf5d1c154..c07c76cf7a4 100644
--- a/lua/nvim-tree.lua
+++ b/lua/nvim-tree.lua
@@ -281,15 +281,14 @@ function M.setup(config_user)
 
   manage_netrw()
 
-  require("nvim-tree.log").setup(config.g)
+  log.start()
 
   if log.enabled("config") then
     log.line("config", "default config + user")
     log.raw("config", "%s\n", vim.inspect(config.g))
   end
 
-  require("nvim-tree.appearance").setup()
-  require("nvim-tree.renderer.components").setup(config.g)
+  require("nvim-tree.appearance").highlight()
 
   require("nvim-tree.view-state").initialize()
 
diff --git a/lua/nvim-tree/actions/fs/rename-file.lua b/lua/nvim-tree/actions/fs/rename-file.lua
index 0b4f22ac1d7..0740b813841 100644
--- a/lua/nvim-tree/actions/fs/rename-file.lua
+++ b/lua/nvim-tree/actions/fs/rename-file.lua
@@ -192,8 +192,4 @@ function M.rename_full(node)
   prompt_to_rename(node, ":p")
 end
 
-function M.setup(opts)
-  config.g.filesystem_watchers = opts.filesystem_watchers
-end
-
 return M
diff --git a/lua/nvim-tree/appearance/init.lua b/lua/nvim-tree/appearance/init.lua
index 61714af644e..9918ca4dd0b 100644
--- a/lua/nvim-tree/appearance/init.lua
+++ b/lua/nvim-tree/appearance/init.lua
@@ -182,7 +182,8 @@ M.LEGACY_LINKS = {
   NvimTreeDiagnosticHintFolderHL = "NvimTreeLspDiagnosticsHintFolderText",
 }
 
-function M.setup()
+---Create all highlight groups and links. Idempotent.
+function M.highlight()
   -- non-linked
   for _, g in ipairs(M.HIGHLIGHT_GROUPS) do
     if g.def then
diff --git a/lua/nvim-tree/config.lua b/lua/nvim-tree/config.lua
index 8e819961a6d..5c3403d36d7 100644
--- a/lua/nvim-tree/config.lua
+++ b/lua/nvim-tree/config.lua
@@ -511,6 +511,21 @@ local function process_config(g)
   -- Open
   --
   g.actions.open_file.window_picker.chars = tostring(g.actions.open_file.window_picker.chars):upper()
+
+  --
+  -- Padding
+  --
+  if g.renderer.indent_width < 1 then
+    g.renderer.indent_width = 1
+  end
+  for k, v in pairs(g.renderer.indent_markers.icons) do
+    if #v == 0 then
+      g.renderer.indent_markers.icons[k] = " "
+    else
+      -- return the first character from the UTF-8 encoded string; we may use utf8.codes from Lua 5.3 when available
+      g.renderer.indent_markers.icons[k] = v:match("[%z\1-\127\194-\244][\128-\191]*")
+    end
+  end
 end
 
 ---Validate user config and migrate legacy.
diff --git a/lua/nvim-tree/events.lua b/lua/nvim-tree/events.lua
index 85e455ece52..ebabd2c4137 100644
--- a/lua/nvim-tree/events.lua
+++ b/lua/nvim-tree/events.lua
@@ -1,4 +1,3 @@
-local notify = require("nvim-tree.notify")
 local Event = require("nvim-tree._meta.api.events").Event
 
 local M = {}
@@ -25,7 +24,7 @@ local function dispatch(event_name, payload)
   for _, handler in pairs(get_handlers(event_name)) do
     local success, error = pcall(handler, payload)
     if not success then
-      notify.error("Handler for event " .. event_name .. " errored. " .. vim.inspect(error))
+      require("nvim-tree.notify").error("Handler for event " .. event_name .. " errored. " .. vim.inspect(error))
     end
   end
 end
diff --git a/lua/nvim-tree/explorer/init.lua b/lua/nvim-tree/explorer/init.lua
index eb9b5f5d097..84af434edba 100644
--- a/lua/nvim-tree/explorer/init.lua
+++ b/lua/nvim-tree/explorer/init.lua
@@ -88,7 +88,7 @@ function Explorer:create_autocmds()
   vim.api.nvim_create_autocmd("ColorScheme", {
     group = self.augroup_id,
     callback = function()
-      appearance.setup()
+      appearance.highlight()
       view.reset_winhl()
       self.renderer:draw()
     end,
diff --git a/lua/nvim-tree/legacy.lua b/lua/nvim-tree/legacy.lua
index 7d42338abd5..ed432c51ed3 100644
--- a/lua/nvim-tree/legacy.lua
+++ b/lua/nvim-tree/legacy.lua
@@ -1,5 +1,3 @@
-local notify = require("nvim-tree.notify")
-
 local M = {}
 
 --- Create empty sub-tables if not present
@@ -120,25 +118,32 @@ end
 ---@param u nvim_tree.config user supplied subset of config
 local function deprecated_config(u)
   if type(u.view) == "table" and u.view.hide_root_folder then
-    notify.info("view.hide_root_folder is deprecated, please set renderer.root_folder_label = false")
+    require("nvim-tree.notify").info(
+      "view.hide_root_folder is deprecated, please set renderer.root_folder_label = false"
+    )
   end
 end
 
 ---@param u nvim_tree.config user supplied subset of config
 local function removed_config(u)
   if u.auto_close then
-    notify.warn("auto close feature has been removed: https://github.com/nvim-tree/nvim-tree.lua/wiki/Auto-Close")
+    require("nvim-tree.notify").warn(
+      "auto close feature has been removed: https://github.com/nvim-tree/nvim-tree.lua/wiki/Auto-Close"
+    )
     u["auto_close"] = nil
   end
 
   if u.focus_empty_on_setup then
-    notify.warn("focus_empty_on_setup has been removed: https://github.com/nvim-tree/nvim-tree.lua/wiki/Open-At-Startup")
+    require("nvim-tree.notify").warn(
+      "focus_empty_on_setup has been removed: https://github.com/nvim-tree/nvim-tree.lua/wiki/Open-At-Startup"
+    )
     u["focus_empty_on_setup"] = nil
   end
 
   if u.create_in_closed_folder then
-    notify.warn(
-      "create_in_closed_folder has been removed and is now the default behaviour. You may use api.fs.create to add a file under your desired node.")
+    require("nvim-tree.notify").warn(
+      "create_in_closed_folder has been removed and is now the default behaviour. You may use api.fs.create to add a file under your desired node."
+    )
   end
   u["create_in_closed_folder"] = nil
 end
diff --git a/lua/nvim-tree/log.lua b/lua/nvim-tree/log.lua
index 9665c1335e6..a564e3ca1bc 100644
--- a/lua/nvim-tree/log.lua
+++ b/lua/nvim-tree/log.lua
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+local config = require("nvim-tree.config")
+
 ---@alias LogTypes "all" | "config" | "copy_paste" | "dev" | "diagnostics" | "git" | "profile" | "watcher"
 
 ---@type table<LogTypes, boolean>
@@ -110,14 +112,17 @@ function M.enabled(typ)
   return file_path ~= nil and (types[typ] or types.all)
 end
 
-function M.setup(opts)
-  if opts.log and opts.log.enable and opts.log.types then
-    types = opts.log.types
+--- Create the log file and enable logging, if globally configured
+function M.start()
+  if config.g.log and config.g.log.enable and config.g.log.types then
+    types = config.g.log.types
     file_path = string.format("%s/nvim-tree.log", vim.fn.stdpath("log"), os.date("%H:%M:%S"), vim.env.USER)
-    if opts.log.truncate then
+    if config.g.log.truncate then
       os.remove(file_path)
     end
-    require("nvim-tree.notify").debug("nvim-tree.lua logging to " .. file_path)
+    if config.g.notify.threshold <= vim.log.levels.DEBUG then
+      require("nvim-tree.notify").debug("nvim-tree.lua logging to " .. file_path)
+    end
   end
 end
 
diff --git a/lua/nvim-tree/renderer/components/devicons.lua b/lua/nvim-tree/renderer/components/devicons.lua
index ad91d058c15..5d7bd275161 100644
--- a/lua/nvim-tree/renderer/components/devicons.lua
+++ b/lua/nvim-tree/renderer/components/devicons.lua
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+local config = require("nvim-tree.config")
+
 ---@alias devicons_get_icon fun(name: string, ext: string?, opts: table?): string?, string?
 ---@alias devicons_setup fun(opts: table?)
 
@@ -6,11 +8,18 @@
 ---@field get_icon devicons_get_icon
 local devicons
 
+--One shot lazy discovery and setup done
+local initialized = false
+
 local M = {}
 
 ---Wrapper around nvim-web-devicons, nils if devicons not available
 ---@type devicons_get_icon
 function M.get_icon(name, ext, opts)
+  if not initialized then
+    M.initialize()
+  end
+
   if devicons then
     return devicons.get_icon(name, ext, opts)
   else
@@ -19,9 +28,8 @@ function M.get_icon(name, ext, opts)
 end
 
 ---Attempt to use nvim-web-devicons if present and enabled for file or folder
----@param opts table
-function M.setup(opts)
-  if opts.renderer.icons.show.file or opts.renderer.icons.show.folder then
+function M.initialize()
+  if config.g.renderer.icons.show.file or config.g.renderer.icons.show.folder then
     local ok, di = pcall(require, "nvim-web-devicons")
     if ok then
       devicons = di --[[@as DevIcons]]
@@ -30,6 +38,7 @@ function M.setup(opts)
       devicons.setup()
     end
   end
+  initialized = true
 end
 
 return M
diff --git a/lua/nvim-tree/renderer/components/init.lua b/lua/nvim-tree/renderer/components/init.lua
deleted file mode 100644
index a06827422dd..00000000000
--- a/lua/nvim-tree/renderer/components/init.lua
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,11 +0,0 @@
-local M = {}
-
-M.devicons = require("nvim-tree.renderer.components.devicons")
-M.padding = require("nvim-tree.renderer.components.padding")
-
-function M.setup(opts)
-  M.devicons.setup(opts)
-  M.padding.setup(opts)
-end
-
-return M
diff --git a/lua/nvim-tree/renderer/components/padding.lua b/lua/nvim-tree/renderer/components/padding.lua
index be84ae0b9de..9e04addfdaf 100644
--- a/lua/nvim-tree/renderer/components/padding.lua
+++ b/lua/nvim-tree/renderer/components/padding.lua
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+local config = require("nvim-tree.config")
 local DirectoryNode = require("nvim-tree.node.directory")
 
 local M = {}
@@ -27,21 +28,21 @@ local function get_padding_indent_markers(depth, idx, nodes_number, markers, wit
 
   if depth > 0 then
     local has_folder_sibling = check_siblings_for_folder(node, with_arrows)
-    local indent = string.rep(" ", M.config.indent_width - 1)
+    local indent = string.rep(" ", config.g.renderer.indent_width - 1)
     markers[depth] = idx ~= nodes_number
     for i = 1, depth - early_stop do
       local glyph
       if idx == nodes_number and i == depth then
-        local bottom_width = M.config.indent_width - 2 + (with_arrows and not inline_arrows and has_folder_sibling and 2 or 0)
-        glyph = M.config.indent_markers.icons.corner
-          .. string.rep(M.config.indent_markers.icons.bottom, bottom_width)
-          .. (M.config.indent_width > 1 and " " or "")
+        local bottom_width = config.g.renderer.indent_width - 2 + (with_arrows and not inline_arrows and has_folder_sibling and 2 or 0)
+        glyph = config.g.renderer.indent_markers.icons.corner
+          .. string.rep(config.g.renderer.indent_markers.icons.bottom, bottom_width)
+          .. (config.g.renderer.indent_width > 1 and " " or "")
       elseif markers[i] and i == depth then
-        glyph = M.config.indent_markers.icons.item .. indent
+        glyph = config.g.renderer.indent_markers.icons.item .. indent
       elseif markers[i] then
-        glyph = M.config.indent_markers.icons.edge .. indent
+        glyph = config.g.renderer.indent_markers.icons.edge .. indent
       else
-        glyph = M.config.indent_markers.icons.none .. indent
+        glyph = config.g.renderer.indent_markers.icons.none .. indent
       end
 
       if not with_arrows or (inline_arrows and (depth ~= i or not node.nodes)) then
@@ -68,10 +69,10 @@ end
 function M.get_indent_markers(depth, idx, nodes_number, node, markers, early_stop)
   local str = ""
 
-  local show_arrows = M.config.icons.show.folder_arrow
-  local show_markers = M.config.indent_markers.enable
-  local inline_arrows = M.config.indent_markers.inline_arrows
-  local indent_width = M.config.indent_width
+  local show_arrows = config.g.renderer.icons.show.folder_arrow
+  local show_markers = config.g.renderer.indent_markers.enable
+  local inline_arrows = config.g.renderer.indent_markers.inline_arrows
+  local indent_width = config.g.renderer.indent_width
 
   if show_markers then
     str = str .. get_padding_indent_markers(depth, idx, nodes_number, markers, show_arrows, inline_arrows, node, early_stop or 0)
@@ -85,7 +86,7 @@ end
 ---@param node Node
 ---@return nvim_tree.api.highlighted_string[]?
 function M.get_arrows(node)
-  if not M.config.icons.show.folder_arrow then
+  if not config.g.renderer.icons.show.folder_arrow then
     return
   end
 
@@ -95,38 +96,18 @@ function M.get_arrows(node)
   local dir = node:as(DirectoryNode)
   if dir then
     if dir.open then
-      str = M.config.icons.glyphs.folder["arrow_open"] .. M.config.icons.padding.folder_arrow
+      str = config.g.renderer.icons.glyphs.folder["arrow_open"] .. config.g.renderer.icons.padding.folder_arrow
       hl = "NvimTreeFolderArrowOpen"
     else
-      str = M.config.icons.glyphs.folder["arrow_closed"] .. M.config.icons.padding.folder_arrow
+      str = config.g.renderer.icons.glyphs.folder["arrow_closed"] .. config.g.renderer.icons.padding.folder_arrow
     end
-  elseif M.config.indent_markers.enable then
+  elseif config.g.renderer.indent_markers.enable then
     str = ""
   else
-    str = " " .. string.rep(" ", #M.config.icons.padding.folder_arrow)
+    str = " " .. string.rep(" ", #config.g.renderer.icons.padding.folder_arrow)
   end
 
   return { str = str, hl = { hl } }
 end
 
-function M.setup(opts)
-  M.config = opts.renderer
-
-  if M.config.indent_width < 1 then
-    M.config.indent_width = 1
-  end
-
-  local function check_marker(symbol)
-    if #symbol == 0 then
-      return " "
-    end
-    -- return the first character from the UTF-8 encoded string; we may use utf8.codes from Lua 5.3 when available
-    return symbol:match("[%z\1-\127\194-\244][\128-\191]*")
-  end
-
-  for k, v in pairs(M.config.indent_markers.icons) do
-    M.config.indent_markers.icons[k] = check_marker(v)
-  end
-end
-
 return M