Tree trimming is not as easy as it may sound. Half-hearted tree care may not usually work on trees. In fact, unnecessary, improper trimming of trees may even end up harmful to the trees and could end up damaging them more and shortening their lifespan instead of helping them. It is important to have the proper knowledge or experience when dealing with such situations and problems.
Related: Why Hire A Professional Company
For beginners that didn’t have any prior training or knowledge in this field though, it would be inevitable to make some mistakes. Watching tutorials or reading books and articles simply does not measure up with the proper training and orientation that professionals went through. For anyone thinking of trimming or pruning, here are some helpful tips that would likely prevent you from making troublesome problems in the future:
- It is highly recommended and quite important to Do Any Pruning During The Dormant Season which is in the late fall or winter. During these times, if the tree may receive damage from pruning, it will be reduced. There are lots of reasons why this is the best time to prune, the only exception is if there are any dangers that need to be avoided.
- Another quite important fact that most people may not know is Not To Prune Too Much Of A Tree. There is a general rule of never prune more than one-fourth of the crown of a tree. Removing a branch five centimeters in diameter would likely be fine, meanwhile, some people may suggest not to remove branches five and 10 centimeters in diameter. The bigger branches such as 10 centimeters in diameter may only be removed if there seems to be a major problem.
- Pruning Branches When They Are Young is extremely helpful, not only are they much easier to manage when still young, they also have a much lower risk of leaving nasty scars and can be structurally arranged however desired. This method may be called “Structural Pruning”. The idea is to prune young trees to shape in the structure they desire, this is because older trees are much larger and grow slower than younger trees, therefore, the changes may be seen more slowly.
- There is also a general rule of Not Trimming A Branch That Is Too Close Or Too Long. Doing so may leave a large, noticeable stub that is not only unsightly but may also not be a sign of good health. Removing the branch collar is also not the proper way of trimming trees.
- When trimming the crown of the tree, the Lateral Branches Should Be Evenly Spaced as much as possible, this especially applies to younger trees.
- When there are branches that seem to overlap or cross one another, then the Overcrossing Branch Should Be Pruned.
