Tree Trimming improves trees’ growth, beauty, and overall health if it’s done perfectly.
You don’t have to be an expert before trimming your trees. All you need is to read and understand the tips shared in this article.
Looking for an easy, done for you tree service? Feel free to get in touch with our Burbank tree trimming experts and we’ll handle it all for you, risk and stress-free, without damaging the health of your trees.
What Is Tree Trimming?
Tree trimming is cutting or removing dead and unwanted branches to beautify a tree and make it more attractive and healthy.
Why You Should Trim Your Tree
The reasons why you should trim your trees include the following:
- It increases a tree’s beauty and attractiveness.
- It guarantees healthy and pacy growth.
- It ensures trees have a lovely shape and structure.
- It enhances flower and fruit production.
- It helps to revive a tree affected by the storm.
- It encourages quality airflow that will benefit the environment.
Effects Of Over-trimming
As much as trimming protects the tree’s laudable attributes, over-trimming the tree will cause more harm than good.
Some adverse effects of Over-trimming include:
- Stunted growth due to insufficient foliage; which causes starvation.
- The trees will be too exposed to pests and diseases.
- The few remaining branches won’t have enough strength to resist wind and stormy weather.
How Often Should You Trim And Prune Trees?
How often to trim your trees depends on size, appearance, growth rate, age, and preferences.
A rapid-growing tree requires more trimming than one with slow growth.
Similarly, you can’t trim a shrub like a mature tree. Hence, every tree has a unique trimming period.
Nonetheless, we advise you to trim your trees once or twice a year.
Which Tree Branches To Prune
You should get rid of the following branches if you must get the desired result:
Dead, Dying, and Broken Branches
Remove dying branches or stems from the tree to prevent them from spreading diseases to other parts of the tree.
Eliminate dying and diseased branches as soon as possible to save the tree.
Similarly, prune dead and broken branches to facilitate the growth of new and healthy branches in spring.
Deranged Branches
Deranged branches are branches that disorganize the tree’s structure and beauty. These include branches that grow inward, downward, or across other branches.
Branches growing downward will touch the ground, exposing the tree to bacterial infection.
Down-growing branches will pose a threat to humans and infrastructure in the future. Therefore, we advise you to trim them as soon as possible.
Water Sprouts
Water sprouts are shoots growing on the branches of trees. You must remove them to prevent chafing and overlapping.
How much can you trim a tree without killing it?
You can trim a tree without killing it if you don’t remove too much foliage. Your tree will remain healthy and attractive if you don’t trim more than 15% of the foliage.
How To Trim Trees Safely
Below are some tips you need to trim your trees safely:
Don’t trim the tree tops
Don’t cut the tree top, regardless of the tree’s size and appearance.
Chopping off the top will affect the crown. It will eventually lead to starvation because the tree will struggle to produce food.
Know The Best Time To Trim Your Trees
Timing is an important factor to consider before trimming your tree. Trimming your tree at the wrong time or period will affect its health and growth.
However, every tree has its suitable trimming period.
For instance, July or August is the best time to trim trees like maple, birch, and walnut, while late fall or winter months are best for chestnut, beech, and ash trees.
Hence, knowing the best time to trim your tree will determine its chances of survival.
Meanwhile, avoid trimming your tree in a drought period when there is little water in the soil.
Consider The Tree’s Condition
Consider the tree’s condition before trimming it. Don’t trim trees that just survived a disease attack or fungus infection because they are stressed already.
Trimming your tree in such conditions will subject them to more hardships they might not survive.
Meanwhile, below is a brief rundown of other crucial tree-trimming tips you must know:
- Trim your trees in their dormant season
- Don’t cut a branch more than 10 centimeters in diameter except if it is infected.
- Trim weak V-shaped branches while you retain the strong, U-shaped ones.
- Ensure the ratio of living crown to tree height is two-thirds to guarantee the tree’s survival rate.
Trim your trees at a tender age to avoid stress and difficulties.
If you need tree trimming services in other areas of LA, you’re in luck. We also provide comprehensive tree care in Irvine and the following LA areas:
Check out our other blog posts for more useful tree care tips and information.
- The Cost of Tree Removal – Factors That Affect Price and Tips for Saving Money
- How to Choose a Tree Trimming Service
- How to Take Care of Trees During a Drought
- How to Kill a Tree Stump
- Tree Pruning 101: Expert Tips for Maintaining Healthy Trees
- Benefits and Reasons to Trim and Prune Trees
- Arborist’s 5 Tips for Choosing The Right Tree for Your Yard
- Most Common Native Trees in Burbank
- When is the Best Time to Trim or Cut Down Your Trees?
- Tree Trimming Tips – How to Trim Trees Safely
