No one wants unhealthy, unattractive plants and trees growing on their property. Fortunately, pruning can help you retain the long-term beauty and health of your trees.
On the surface, pruning seems quite easy. You just need to grab your pruners and chop off the bits of your tree you don’t like, right? Wrong. Making incorrect cuts can do a lot of harm and cause irreversible damage.
In this article, we’ll share the common pruning mistakes most people make, highlighting why it’s always best to entrust the task to a premium arborist.
The Dangers of Improper Pruning
It’s easy to underestimate the damage improper pruning can cause. However, doing so will have you saying goodbye to your tree a lot sooner than you would have liked.
For instance, pruning incorrectly can:
- Weaken your tree’s structural integrity
- Create wounds that make your tree vulnerable to diseases
- Cause stunted growth
- Reduce your tree’s aesthetic value
- Greatly shorten your tree’s lifespan
Common Pruning Mistakes
All these negative effects are a result of the mistakes people make when pruning their trees. Here are six of the most common pruning mistakes and the harm they do.
1. Failing To Have a Goal
As crucial as it is, you shouldn’t simply prune your tree for pruning’s sake. There has to be an ultimate goal, whether that’ll be to:
- Increase flower or fruit production
- Remove dead branches
- Improve the tree’s aesthetics
Having a goal will prevent you from pruning your tree aimlessly and causing irreversible damage.
2. Disregarding Safety Measures
It might not seem like it, but pruning is risky. The task involves climbing up your tree with sharp tools and chopping off twigs and large branches. If you do not take the proper safety measures, you could be exposing yourself to plenty of safety risks.
3. Making Incorrect Cuts
When pruning, be mindful of the cuts you make. Cutting too close to the trunk will remove the tree’s branch collar, leaving a large wound that will not heal properly. Also, you don’t want to leave behind too much of the dead branch because this would allow the decay to spread to the trunk.
4. Over-Pruning
Never overdo your pruning. For starters, removing too many leaves could cause your tree to starve. Also, it could expose the previously shaded bark to extreme heat, creating sunscald.
5. Using Dull Tools
As far as pruning mistakes go, this isn’t one that many people think of. It does matter, though. This is because using dull tools will create improper cuts that shred or rip the bark and lead to the formation of larger wounds.
6. Pruning at the Wrong Time of the Year
Believe it or not, there’s a right and wrong time to prune your tree. Get the timing wrong and you could set your tree up for nothing but trouble.
For instance, it’s especially vital to avoid pruning your tree during its growing season, usually between spring and late summer. By failing to do so, you risk stressing the tree, leaving it vulnerable to disease.
Schedule Professional Pruning in Westchase
The benefits of having trees in your yard are well-documented. However, your trees need regular maintenance if you want to enjoy these benefits, with pruning a key aspect of it. The only problem is that you have to ensure your tree’s pruning is done correctly.
The best way to ensure this and avoid common pruning mistakes is to always leave the task to a trained and certified arborist.
Are you looking for such an arborist in Westchase, FL? Get in touch with Arborist Aboard today at (813) 920-4410 and enjoy premium pruning services.
