Pruning is the most common tree and shrub maintenance practice. It involves carefully removing dead, damaged, diseased or otherwise unwanted tree branches. Proper pruning of trees can:
Enhance their appearance.
Increase your property value.
Improve strength, structural stability, and safety.
Contribute to your enjoyment of your outdoor space.
Why prune your trees?
Here are many good reasons to prune trees, including the following:
Removing diseased, dead, or storm-damaged branches that look ugly and could hurt someone.
Thinning the canopy of the tree to allow for new growth and better air circulation (which makes for a healthier tree).
Reducing the height of the tree (note that we do NOT top trees).
Removing lower branches that are blocking walkways, sidewalks, or patios, or branches that are hitting your house.
Enhancing the view from your home or property.
Shaping a tree so it looks better.
Types of Tree Pruning
There are three general types of tree pruning – pruning for tree safety, health, and aesthetics. Often, the three go hand-in-hand – safe, healthy trees are usually more visually appealing.
PRUNING FOR SAFETY
This involves removing damaged or diseased branches while reducing the risk of failure from wind and snow loads, as well as maintaining the structural integrity of the tree. This usually means removing branches that could fall and damage your property or hurt someone using a pruning technique called crown cleaning.
PRUNING FOR TREE HEALTH
This type of pruning makes trees healthier by removing diseased or insect-infested wood, promoting airflow, and removing crossing or rubbing branches. Both crown cleaning and crown thinning fall into this category.
PRUNING FOR AESTHETICS
If you want to enhance the natural form and character of your trees and shrubs, there are several pruning techniques that we can use. For example, we can improve the shape of the tree through crown reduction, open up your view with canopy thinning or crown raising, and ensure proper tree structure with crown cleaning.
Dormant Pruning in Winter
Pruning your shrubs and trees while they are still dormant is one of the best yard care practices. By having Dring Family Tree complete pruning during the winter, you can expect your trees to grow more vigorously in the spring.
HOW DOES DORMANT PRUNING WORK?
By pruning deciduous trees and shrubs (those that lose their leaves) during the winter, the reshaping of the trees causes less stress to the plant itself. The process of pruning also reduces the collective amount of buds on the branches.
In the spring, the net effect is that the stored energy of the tree is directed toward fewer buds and branches, providing the plant with renewed life and energy. In addition, because the tree is dormant when the pruning is done, it more quickly heals from the cuts and bruises that are part of the pruning process and can prevent infections from occurring.
Dormant pruning is the ideal pruning option for most deciduous trees and many shrubs.
Our staff of tree care specialists and Certified Arborist are experts in all varieties of trees and shrubs that are common to the Northeast Ohio canopy system. We can quickly identify the species in your yard and let you know the requirements of pruning.