Tree pruning in Virginia is a landscaping service that can beautify and reinforce your trees so they are able to fight off insects, diseases and severe weather – and look wonderful doing it!
Pruning must be done if you want a healthy tree, but it needs to be done properly by someone who has experience in what they’re doing. Like a certified arborist from VA Tree Trimming. Homeowners may be able to prune trees safely while they are still small and growing, but you also may be doing irreparable damage to the tree in the process.
To correctly prune trees, you should know all of the following:
- When to prune your types of trees
- How much of the tree can be trimmed at at once
- Where to cut each branch so you do not harm the tree
Taking too much from a tree could kill it or cause structural damage, but conservative trimming done every year benefits trees in several ways. Pruning helps to improve the appearance of trees, makes them healthier, removes dead or diseased branches and assists in fruit or flower production.
Ideally, pruning needs to be performed each year, but as trees get older, you may be able to wait two years between pruning services. Regardless of how routinely you have your trees pruned, be sure your arborist is qualified to perform the type of tree pruning your trees need. This won’t be an issue if you call VA Tree Trimming in Virginia!
Types of Tree Pruning Methods
There are 7 ways to correctly prune a tree so that it grows stronger and healthier each year.
Depending on the size, species and health status of your trees, one method might be more beneficial than another, but each technique has distinct benefits to consider.
Crown Thinning Your Trees
Crown thinning is common for older, overgrown trees in Virginia. This method eliminates weak branches within the crown to allow more light and air flow throughout the crown. Air flow is important for disease prevention.
This tree pruning method also removes branches and limbs that are touching so they do not rub up against one another and break or cause weaker areas that can be an access point for pests. Limbs that grow at strange angles are almost always cut off during crown thinning.
Crown Raising Your Trees
This tree trimming method removes branches and limbs at the lowest part of the crown so new limbs start higher up on the trunk. Letting low branches get too big makes them very hard to remove, and they can pull nutrients from the top of the tree, which leads to less fruit and a weak tree.
There are a variety of reasons you might decide to raise the crown of a tree. Many times, it is done in order to clear the line of sight for automobiles and pedestrians, but it can be done to increase space for landscaping underneath the tree.
It is a very common technique for overgrown trees that are too close to homes and other buildings.
Crown Reduction
Crown reduction lowers the overall size of the crown from its outer edge. It shortens branches horizontally and vertically to keep the tree at a manageable size. By lowering the size of the crown, you can remove the need to chop down the tree because it won’t interfere with traffic lights, power lines or street lights.
Even when the tree isn’t close to structures like these, crown reduction will help the tree look neater because it removes irregular growth. This is a good solution for trees that are various ages but you want to look uniform.
Crown Cleaning
Also known as deadwood pruning, crown cleaning is a minimally invasive tree pruning technique that eliminates dying, snapped or diseased branches so that the rest of the tree can continue to grow normally. These limbs can only cause problems later.
Crown cleaning makes the tree look much better, and it stops branches from rubbing together. It is also a safety practice that reduces the chance of branches falling, since healthy branches do not fall very often.
Crown Restoration
Crown restoration is an intense trimming process for trees that have been severely damaged (either by pests or weather). It needs to be attempted by a professional who knows how the tree is going to grow in the future and how long it’s restoration will take.
Unlike most other tree pruning services, crown restoration happens over an extended period of time with conservative trimming that reshapes the tree. Your arborist should have a plan to restore the tree, but also be flexible as the tree grows and reshapes on its own, adapting to the tree’s new growth pattern.
Vista Pruning
If you want trees that add to the overall beauty of your landscaping, you are actually interested in vista pruning. The purpose of vista pruning is to help to make the tree more visually pleasing from a particular vantage point.
It consists of many tree trimming techniques including crown thinning, crown cleaning and crown reduction – anything that helps the trees look prettier. Remember, though, that a professional is not going to sacrifice the health of a tree, so the focus of vista pruning is still to create strong, healthy trees.
Espalier Pruning
Espaliered trees are pruned heavily to grow flat against walls or a trellis. It is a unique style of trimming that is going to draw a lot of attention to your landscape. Espalier pruning must be started when the tree is very young and then continued very consistently during the tree’s life span.
Some of the benefits of espalier pruning include allowing maximum sunlight to get to the trees, as well as making it easier to harvest fruit.
Professional Tree Pruning in Virginia
Tree pruning can be dangerous for a tree, your landscaping, and, of course, for you! VA Tree Trimming highly encourages professional tree trimming over attempting DIY.
Aside from the many possible dangers of tree trimming, you can do a lot of harm to a tree if you don’t know how to prune it properly. Over-pruning is one of the most common errors made by homeowners caring for their own trees.
Trees in Virginia that get annual care from a professionals are much better off, and hiring a certified arborist from VA Tree Trimming to trim the trees on your property is a choice you won’t regret. Locate your town in our service area. We work with arborists throughout the entire state of Virginia!
