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When To Prune Trees

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If you’re just getting into and learning about tree care, you may find yourself wondering when the best time is to prune your trees. This will mostly depend on your reason for pruning- are you trying to remove dead limbs? Increase flowering? Figure that out, and then plan what season is best for you to work on your trees.

First, know that you should try not to prune your trees in the fall. Pruning usually increases new growth of some kind, and this is not ideal if the climate is about to get freezing cold. Not to mention, cuts won’t heal as quickly as in other seasons, and this will leave the tree vulnerable to the fungal spores that spread more during fall. You may want to get the pruning out of the way, but allow yourself to wait until all the leaves drop, the limbs are more visible, and the tree has better chances of surviving the rest of the year.

After fall passes, however, you are free to prune your trees in winter. This is a popular time to prune, because while your tree is dormant, you can make cuts that will insure more growth in the spring. If you plan to do this, you should probably wait until the coldest part of the season is over.

But if you weren’t planning on increasing growth, and instead want to slow the growth of your tree, plan to prune in the warmer months of the year. Summer is a good time to decrease the growth of any unwanted branches. In addition to dwarfing parts of your tree, you may also want to remove dead wood or defective branches during this time. In summer, you can see the limbs very easily.

Once you know what you want to achieve with pruning your tree, figuring out when to do it is easy. Plan accordingly for the weather and climate of your specific area, and good luck!

Summer Tree Care

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During the warmer months, your trees – young and old – will need special attention in order to stay healthy. There are a lot of ways to provide this attention and care, with some of them being particularly crucial if you want healthy and happy trees at the beginning and end of your summer.

For starters, if you’ve considered hiring a professional to evaluate your trees, summer is a good time to do so. When the climate is hot and often very dry, you may need an expert opinion on how best to take care of your trees. They will suggest a lot of ways to keep them healthy, one of which is mulching. A lot of people mulch their trees in the spring, but there’s still time in the summer. Putting mulch around the base of your tree should regulate soil temperature and hold in moisture.

Other treatments include pruning and irrigating your trees. Irrigation is especially important during the summer, and very important for your younger trees. Always be sure to focus more on less-frequent watering that goes deeper to the roots, rather than more constant, quick watering.

Depending on where you live, another danger that summer brings to your trees is the possibility of storms. This is where a professional is useful- they can look at the position of your trees and determine any danger of damaging property during a summer storm. You can also remove limbs or cable some of them up to try and limit the potential damage.

There can be a lot that goes into caring for a tree. But once summer is over and your trees are happy and healthy, the effort will be worth it. Be sure to either do research or speak to an expert about how your particular climate and location will affect your trees during the summer.

Tree Pruning Basics

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Trimming and pruning trees can enhance the natural beauty of a landscape if done right, but can also hold the risk of permanently damaging a tree or shrub. A tree will naturally grow and form into the shape that benefits the most from the surrounding area and how light coverage is affected, so even without pruning a tree will be able to grow healthily. If you do want to try pruning your trees or shrubs, keep in mind that it takes proper understanding and skill in order to complete successfully.

Pruning is done in order to train the plant into a specific shape, maintain the tree or shrub’s health, improve flowering quality, or restrict growth. Regardless of the specific purpose, pruning should always be done methodically with a goal in mind. The first step should always be to cut off all dead, diseased, or broken branches. Additional removal of branches should only be done if you want to train the tree, if the tree still seems crowded, or if there is a hazard.

Depending on which type of plant you are pruning, the recommended time to prune can vary. Following the recommended time of year to prune the plant will reduce the risk of damaging and weakening the plant. The best time of year to prune most plants is during the late winter of early spring in the time before the new growth starts.

Another important part of pruning is taking care of your tools. Equipment that is properly taken care of will last longer and do a better job. After using equipment, oil it in order to keep it from rusting. The most popular shears are scissor action pruning shears and anvil action shears. Other tools, such as lopping shears and pole pruners, are used for cutting bigger and harder to reach branches.

Always make sure to consider the circumstances, such as season, age, and type of the plant, before attempting to prune. With proper research and practice, you should be able to prune successfully.

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When To Prune Trees

Summer Tree Care

Tree Pruning Basics

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