Trees are an essential addition to your home. They provide you with shade, privacy, a chance to bond with mother nature and are an excellent complement to your landscape design. But without proper care and maintenance, trees can end up becoming a hazard in your home.
Trimming is one of the top practices for keeping your trees in good shape and health. Trimming requires the application of skill and precision to get the job done.
Ideally, you should hire a professional to carry out trimming on your behalf for the best results. Trying to cut trees on your own isn’t recommended as you may not have the right skills, equipment, and know-how to do a proper job.`
Tree trimming vs. pruning: what is the difference?
Tree trimming and pruning are both essential landscape maintenance services. These practices are interrelated but have several differences. Trimming, to start with, involves cutting tree branches, parts, and twigs. The importance of trimming includes:
Prevent pests and the spread of disease
Trimming can get rid of infested branches and therefore prevent diseases from spreading to other parts or the rest of the tree.
Remove dead branches
Dead tree branches are prone to falling. If they are left hanging, they may fall and damage underlying property or, even worse, hurt someone. Trimming ensures the safe removal of dead branches and averts property damage or personal injuries.
Enhance growth
Trimming tree tops helps encourage the growth of leaves, which is essential to the overall health of your tree. Trimmed trees tend to grow thicker canopies that are perfect for shade and privacy. Trimming branches also promote vertical growth as trees become taller.
Improve aesthetic appeal
Nicely trimmed trees provide a beautiful foundation for your landscaping design, especially if certified tree service professionals do the work. An expert will create decorative shapes and ensure your decorated trees are a marvel to watch.
Like trimming, pruning is also an equally important landscape maintenance procedure. It involves the removal of specific plants or tree parts, mostly buds, branches, and roots, to ensure trees are strong, healthy, and confined to their areas.
The art and science of pruning trees offers the following benefits;
Improve tree health
Pruning allows you to remove damaged branches and limbs, which may be damaged because of pests, storms, or lack of sunlight. Removing such branches and limbs helps prevent further tree damage and the spread of diseases.
Guarantee your safety
Trees hovering on your property are a danger that should be removed as soon as possible
Removing them eliminates the risk of branches falling and causing damage to your property or hurting people.
Enhance Aesthetics
Pruning can help shape trees and encourage directed growth, which enhances the appearance and health of a tree.
Why trim your trees?
As discussed previously, trimming is an essential practice that you should consider for the sake of the health and safety of your trees. However, trimming is often ignored, even though the method is an essential part of landscaping and design.
By trimming your trees at the right time, you can control the shape of its crown and avoid many problems most homeowners encounter all the time. With trimming, you can enhance the health of your trees by getting rid of diseased branches. Besides, you can avoid injuries and property damage.
Plus, trimming can get rid of overgrown branches and limbs, makes your trees visually appealing and promotes the growth of fruits, flowers, and foliage
When should you trim your trees?
Every homeowner needs to trim their trees at particular times of the year. The timing, nonetheless, depends on the type of tree in your yard. You should trim broken, dead, damaged, or infested branches as soon as you detect them. Whatever the situation, it’s advisable to seek the services of a professional arborist when trimming your trees.
Deciduous trees do best if they’re trimmed in the spring or summer. Cutting them at this time encourages fast growth.
Evergreens, however, do best if they’re trimmed in the winter when they are dormant. But in areas like Colorado, which experience distinct winters, trimming trees at this time could end up killing them.
Asa result, the best time to trim trees varies, depending on the type of trees in your yard. It’s recommended that you consult an expert arborist if you plan to trim your trees regardless of the season. You don’t want to affect the health, appearance, and safety of your trees because of ill-timed trimming.
How to trim your trees
In theory, trimming trees may sound simple. But the reality is that you need to know precisely how and where to cut your tree. Otherwise, you may end up damaging the tree, which will end up destroying your landscaping design.
Cutting branches requires skills and precision to avoid open stubs, which can be entry points for pests. Unlike humans, trees do not regenerate tissues. Therefore, you should be careful not to wound tree trunks with landscaping equipment and machinery such as saws, tractors, etc. Tree trunk wounds can craft openings for vicious fungi that are harmful to the health and appearance of your trees.
When trimming, use safer equipment like a sharp saw, shears, or a hedge trimmer. Also, make sure that you prune at the right places, especially in areas with visible damage or excessive growth. Some trees tend to blossom very early; thus, they take in a lot of water and energy.
Early blossoming can block or impact the complete growth of your tree. As such, it is best to trim your tree early so that the tree can absorb water and energy for healthy growth. Note, trees have a natural resistance in the thicker part at the bottom of the branch, where the branch grows from the trunk called the ‘collar.’ When Trimming Your Trees, you should not take away the collar.
Also, cut branches downwards to prevent water from settling on cut wounds as this can cause rotting. If a branch is growing upwards, do not cut it as it may hinder the proper growth of the tree. Last but not least, leave shorter stubs when trimming trees to allow the tree to form proper calluses.
After you finish trimming your tree, seal cut areas with a suitable sealant. For a deciduous tree, use a tar-based tree sealant. Utilize a grafting wax when sealing an evergreen tree.
Safety measures
Be careful when carrying out a tree trimming exercise. Take precautions to avoid hurting yourself or anyone around you. Tree branches can be sharp or heavy and can cause severe injuries if they fall on you. Heavy branches can damage your property, as well.
As a result, before you start trimming, determine how much work is needed. Get in touch with a professional to help you out. An expert has the skills, know-how and equipment to trim your trees properly and safely.