Did you know that trees with dead limbs or unstable branch structure are highly susceptible to outside attacks that can significantly shorten their lifespans? In the rainy and wet King and Snohomish counties, trees with wounded limbs are particularly susceptible to bacterial infections and fungal colonies. But careful pruning by a certified arborist can help!

Pruning is a vital part of tree care because it removes damaged limbs before they can affect the overall health of the tree. Regular pruning will also improve the shape of the tree and can often lead to early diagnosis of potential problems, letting you enjoy its shade and beauty for many years to come.

Why is pruning so important?

Trees are living creatures, and just like humans and animals, they sometimes require outside intervention by an expert to maintain their health. One of the biggest threats to tree health is broken or decaying limbs, since they often act as gateways for infection. But pruning is also an important component of preventative care for trees.

A skilled arborist will do more than just trim out dead and dying limbs; he or she will also be able to identify and address a number of potential future problems such as:

Crossing or chafing branches
Active infections on hard-to-see branches
Cankers or galls
Branches growing into structures or walkways
Bark inclusions (weak limb attachment)
Two co-dominant leaders instead of a single center leader

The arborists at Elite Tree Care are trained to recognize and treat all of these issues with pruning cuts that are specifically tailored to each tree and its particular condition.

How should a tree be pruned?

When an arborist prunes a tree, every cut serves a purpose. Depending on the maturation stage, health, and integrity of the tree, the arborist will make cuts that follow one or more of these objectives:

Structural pruning—Proactive pruning of young trees to encourage good limb structure, prevent future breakage or crossing limbs, and train growth away from structures and walkways.

Crown cleaning—Regular tree maintenance that focuses on removing dead, dying, damaged, cracked, or crossing branches, with minimal removal of live branch tissue. This is especially important after storms, to repair any weather-related damage.

Crown reduction—Reducing a tree’s height and spread, usually to make it fit into a space it is beginning to outgrow. This extreme type of pruning is usually very stressful for trees, and if not done properly can lead to premature death of the tree.

Crown raising—Removing the lowest branches of a tree in order to create a sightline for streets, or to make walkways more accessible.

An experienced arborist will be able to identify and implement which type of pruning your tree or trees need.

The ultimate aim of tree care and maintenance is to manage the tree’s health, reduce hazards, develop its structure, provide clearance if necessary, and improve its aesthetics, so that it can live a long and healthy life. To that end, any tree trimming should follow the guidelines for basic pruning practices set forth by the American National Standards Institute.

An arborist following these guidelines will not:

Use dirty or unsharpened tools to make cuts
Leave branch stubs
Make excessive heading cuts
Cut off the branch collar (which prevents a tree from naturally sealing a cut)
Top trees or lion’s tail trees
Remove more than 25% of the foliage of a single branch
Remove more than 25% of the total tree foliage in a single year
Damage other parts of the tree during pruning
Use wound paint to seal pruning cuts

How does a tree respond to pruning?

Pruning essentially creates open wounds in the skin of a tree. So how does it recover from this?

Trees have a natural defense mechanism known as Compartmentalization of Decay in Trees, or CODIT. This mechanism is the ability of the tree to seal over, or compartmentalize, wounded tissues. It can do this thanks to specialized tissues that create calluses over cuts.

A tree’s ability to seal its wounds has a lot to do with its age, health, and vitality. Some trees, like elms, hornbeams, lindens, and the majority of oaks, tend to heal over pruning cuts faster than tree like maples, birches, poplars, and crabapples.

Smaller cuts allow a tree to heal more quickly, and also limits exposure of the tree’s tissue to bacteria and fungus. When mature trees need several large limbs removed, an arborist may recommend progressive pruning, which removes limbs over a period of months or years instead of all at once. This longer time period allows to the tree to heal each cut without experiencing undue stress.

Stress caused by a pruning that is too harsh can negatively affect the health and appearance of a tree. A stressed tree may produce less foliage, smaller leaves, have stunted growth, or produce unsightly vertical “waterspouts” in an attempt to recover some of its lost crown.

An experienced arborist will make strategic cuts in order to prune a tree without triggering these stress responses.

How often should you prune a tree?

Most trees will benefit from pruning during their lifetime. But when and how often should you prune a tree?

In the case of young trees, more frequent pruning will help develop a strong, balanced growth habit by removing crossing or awkward limbs, and directing other into new lines of growth. These trees will benefit from a yearly or biennial light pruning.

If you have mature trees on your property, make a habit of regularly inspecting them for branches that are discolored, brittle, or without foliage—these are probably dead or dying and need to be removed. If your tree has never been pruned, an arborist can inspect your tree and help you make a schedule for ongoing maintenance.

Professional tree care in King and Snohomish Counties

The certified arborists at Elite Tree Care provides tree trimming and maintenance pruning in Seattle, Bellevue, Kirkland, Woodinville, Bothell, Lynnwood, and Everett, and many of the surrounding areas.

Whether you have large trees in need of crown cleaning, or young trees that need structural pruning to ensure a long life, Elite Tree Care can help. We’ll assess your trees’ condition, structure, and location, and create a pruning plan to enhance their appearance, remove potential hazards, and improve their health.

Call Elite Tree Care at (425) 350-6909 to schedule a free estimate!