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Pruning

 

Pruning trees is an important part of maintenance.  Every pruning objective has a purpose for the health, structure, or appearance of your trees, and we consider many factors such as time of year, tree stress, and growth habits.

 

All pruning is performed by, or under direct supervision of, an ISA Board Certified Master Arborist®, according ANSI A300 standards.

Managing Risk

This type of pruning is based on a tree risk assessment and your personal tolerance of risk. 

Managing health

Pruning to prevent branch failure is not only a way of managing risk, but it also prevents damage to the tree itself which can introduce decay and pests. Pruning is recommended as a treatment for powdery mildew, fireblight, and other biotic diseases.

Develop structure

Young trees and transplanted trees often need to be trained by pruning. By eliminating co-dominant stems, subordinating laterals, and other pruning, we can prevent many problems that affect the future health, safety, and appearance of trees.

Providing Clearance

Trees growing too close to houses, chimneys, or other buildings, or interfering with the use of driveways and walkways can be pruned properly for clearance and to preserve a natural appearance.

Managing size or shape

We DO NOT do tree topping! But we can selectively reduce or remove branches to maintain a desired form, shape, or size if it's appropriate based the species or cultivar, condition, and other factors.

Improving appearance

Pruning trees to improve their appearance or aesthetics is important. After all, you want your landscape to look beautiful. We can help you good decisions on how to go about this with respect for your tree's biology and other considerations.

Fruit Tree Pruning

Pruning fruit trees for fruit production requires special pruning techniques. In late winter or early spring, we prune for structure and to encourage growth. During the growing season, we prune to reduce growth.

Managing wildlife habitat

Trees in our landscapes are vital to wildlife. Crown thinning is an outdated practice that can destroy habitat. Removing excess dead branches can also make a tree no longer suitable for nesting. Whenever possible, we prefer to leave trees in their most natural-looking state. We even encourage you to leave small, standing dead trees, or retain a tall stumps that can be modified to create snags. 

Restoration Pruning

 

Trees that have been topped, damaged from storms, vandalized, lion-tailed, or otherwise pruned improperly in the past have been under extreme stress. The way in which they regrow their crowns for survival puts them at risk of health and safety issues, and can make them look unsightly. We restore the crown to a more natural state by

  • Retaining suitable stems, branches, and shoots to be developed.

  • Reducing, subordinating, and/or removing undesirable branches. This may include crossing/rubbing branches, dead branches, overextended branches, or weakly attached branches that are prone to failure.


 

 

 

 

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