Four Essential Tree Trimming Methods

Tree trimming is a routine landscape maintenance practice that enhances the beauty of your property, improves its total landscape, and boosts the health and longevity of your trees. During regular pruning, you remove dead, diseased or broken branches, reduce the risk of storm damage and promote plant health by opening up the canopy to allow light and air to filter throughout the entire foliage.

While some homeowners think they can cut their own tree limbs, this can be dangerous without proper training and equipment. Inexperienced DIY trimmers can cause significant harm to the structure of a tree and even render it unsafe, leading to expensive removals down the road. To avoid costly errors, follow these four essential tree-trimming methods to ensure you prune like a pro and maintain your trees properly.

When a tree becomes overgrown, it can look unbalanced and bedraggled, which can interfere with its natural growth and health. Unhealthy limbs are more likely to break under heavy loads and can leave gaps in the crown that expose the trunk to sunlight, which can lead to weakening and decay. Regular trimming helps prevent these problems and keeps your trees looking great.

There are many reasons to prune your tree, but the most important is maintaining proper structure and form while removing problematic branches, such as dead, dying or diseased limbs, branches that rub together or have grown in an awkward position. You can also correct form and structural problems by thinning out the center of the tree or reducing canopy height, eliminating narrow crotches and removing double leaders where they occur.

When pruning a branch, make the first cut just outside of the branch collar – a wide, ridged area of stem tissue where the branch attaches to the main trunk. It’s best to leave a stub if possible, but not so close that you cut into the softer wood inside the collar. Cutting into the softer inner wood can cause rot and create wounds that are slow to heal. Instead, make your second cut just beyond the collar and cut off the stub.

The final cut should be made just above the bud where you want the new branch to grow. If the bud is too high or low, it may die and not produce new growth, so be careful not to cut too far back. When you make the final cut, be sure to leave a stub no more than one inch in diameter.

The best way to prune your trees is with specialized tree-trimming equipment, including hand shears, loppers, pole saws and chainsaws. Choose quality products that are suited to your needs and designed for safety, comfort and efficiency. Look for equipment that is reviewed and recommended by professional arborists to ensure it is durable enough for the job. Choosing a tree-trimming tool that is comfortable to use will help reduce fatigue and increase your productivity. Look for ergonomic equipment and avoid cheap hardware store tools that are often less sturdy and can be difficult to handle, especially in the field.

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