Top 8 Tree Pruning Tips

While we would prefer that you called us for all your pruning needs, many of our clients like to get outside and get hands-on with their landscape. For many people, myself included, working in the yard can be calming and therapeutic and you get to immediately see the beautiful results of your work.

Before you start trimming keep in mind that every pruning cut make will influence the future growth (and health) of your plant. Following these 8 important pruning tips will help keep your plants both beautiful and healthy.

1. For some tree species it is best to prune during the dormant season. A couple examples of these would be our native Oak and Elm trees. Both theses tree species can become infected with severe fungal diseases if pruned during the growing season.

2. Prune out any dead, damaged or diseased branches. They’re not contributing anything to the tree and could possibly allow decay to enter the main trunk.

3. Remove any sprouts (root suckers) growing from the base of the tree, if there are any.

4. Remove any fast-growing vertical branches (water sprouts) in the crown of the tree.

5. Don’t leave stubs. Branches should be cut back to a lateral branch or to the branch bark collar if you’re removing the entire branch.

6. Use the correct pruning tool. Hand snips, loppers and hand saws all have maximum size branches they are designed to prune. Trying to prune a 1-inch branch with hand snips will probably not result in a clean cut; and clean cuts heal much faster than jagged cuts or stubs.

7. Leave the large branch pruning to professional arborists. Oftentimes, large branches need to be removed in sections, or lowered with ropes, to be safely removed from a tree.

8. If the pruning is going to require climbing into the tree or using a ladder it’s time to really consider contacting a professional tree pruning arborist. These are scenarios where homeowners often find themselves getting hurt, breaking something in their yard or pulling down power lines.