For trees to look beautiful, be fruitful, and stay healthy it is always best to perform regular tree maintenance. Maintaining a tree may seem easy, but it is more complex than you can imagine. But by learning the basics of pruning and trimming your tree, it may be easy for you to do the majority of the work by yourself.
Different trees have different needs since they differ in growth patterns, size, maintenance needs, and shape. So it would be best for you to understand the behavior and, needs of the tree species before picking up a chain saw and starting to cut off branches and limbs.
For most trees to stay magical, healthy, and thrive it is advisable to trim and prune them every 4-7 years. You can hire tree trimming and pruning services in Benton, AR for the right maintenance of your trees. Below is a detailed guide on tips and techniques for trimming and pruning your trees.
Why You Should Trim or Prune a Tree
Different people have different reasons to prune or trim trees. Health, aesthetics, and safety are some of the reasons why most people prune their trees.
Health
Trees can fall unexpectedly if they are not well maintained, especially if parts of the trees are infected. To prevent a tree from falling on your house, it is crucial to regularly inspect and address any signs of disease or weakness in the tree’s structure. You can save a tree if you carefully prune branches and limbs that are affected. Also, trim off branches that are crossing or rubbing together to maintain the tree’s health and stability.
Aesthetics
If you are looking to enhance the appearance and shape of your tree, pruning will help a lot. But imposing an unnatural size or shape on a tree could seriously damage the tree since the amount of pruning and trimming needed will be unreasonable.
Safety
If your tree has broken or dead branches it can be a serious hazard since it can fall off at any time. Besides, if tree branches are obscuring your vision while driving the best thing is to trim them.
Also, it is not advisable to let your trees grow too close to power lines. In this case, you should contact the utility company to solve the issue.
General Tree Trimming Tips
Be conscious about the size of the branch that needs to be removed. It is ok to remove the branch if it is less than 5cm in diameter. It will be risky for you to remove the branch if it is in between 5-10cm. You should contact a professional tree service company to help you with the removal.
It is advisable not to trim the branches too close or far away from the branch collar. Also, you should never remove the branch collar or leave a large stub.
Take advantage of the dormant season to prune or trim the branches. But it is ok to prune the trees in any season if you find dangling, decaying, or dead branches.
Trimming trees that have weak or V-shaped and narrow angles is highly advised. But according to Urban Jacks Tree Service, you should not remove branches with strong, u-shaped angles.
If you are not using professional services to prune your branches, try and prune the young branches. This is much easier and gentle for you as you are lowering the risks of leaving nasty scars.
Tree Pruning Techniques
If you are looking to improve your tree’s health and structure then you should understand that pruning a tree is an art dependent on the scientific principles of tree physiology. Below are the most common types of pruning techniques:
Crown Reduction/Reshaping
If your tree is overgrown beyond its permitted space you should consider using this type of pruning. Naturally, remove the foliage to make the tree small, this helps in minimizing stress on the tree. If you do the reduction properly, the tree will maintain a strong framework of large branches. A strong framework supports twigs and smaller branches to produce dense foliage for the next season.
Crown Thinning
If you are looking to increase light and air penetration throughout the crown of a tree this is the right pruning technique. It is best for maintaining or developing a tree’s form and structure. To leave a balanced density you should remove the limbs from throughout the crown. To prevent excessive production of epicormic sprouts and avoidavoiding unnecessary stress crown thinning is the best pruning technique.
Crown Raising
Carefully prune the tree to raise the crown to give clearance to pedestrians. According tree removal service companies, you should maintain live branches on two-thirds of a tree’s height. Removing many branches near the bottom half will hinder the tree from developing a strong stem.
Additional Tree Trimming Techniques to Keep in Mind
Below are a few trimming techniques that you should consider:
- Keenly observe the branch collar at the stem tissue at the base before making a cut. Consider finding the branch ridge at the upper surface and parallel to the angle of the stem.
- To prevent damaging or injuring the branch collar ensure that you angle your cut down and cut at the outside of the bark ridge away from the stem.
- This technique is useful to both living and dead limbs.
Consider applying the three-cut technique if the stem is too long: First, on the stem that faces away from the branch create a notch that is being retained. Then the second cut should be inside the crotch and above the branch ridge. Cut through the stem parallelly to the branch bark ridge to remove the stub.
Keep these tricks and techniques from this tree pruning guide in mind before taking on the task of pruning and trimming your trees.
Get the best tree services in Benton, AR
Whether tree pruning, stump removal, or a clean-up after storm damage, you’ll need professional services to maintain both the trees and your property. Urban Jack Tree Service offers a great experience to ensure healthy trees and well-kept property.
We have state-of-the-art equipment alongside a tree marshall team with exceptional expertise. So, you can be sure of a great job at a very reasonable price if you’re in Benton, Pine Bluff, North Little Rock, AR, and the surrounding areas. Our office location is in both Benton and Hot Springs Village, AR but serves the greater Little Rock Arkansas area. Contact us for your next project and free estimate.
