- To shorten a branch or twig, cut it back to a side branch or make the cut about 1/4 inch above the bud.
- Always prune above a bud facing the outside of a plant to force the new branch to grow in that direction.
Pruning trees and shrubs
Avoid topping trees. Removing large branches leaves stubs that can cause several health problems. It also destroys the plant’s natural shape and promotes suckering and the development of weak branch structures.
- To encourage flower and fruit development.
- To maintain a dense hedge.
- To maintain or encourage a desired plant form or special garden forms.
Prune to improve plant appearance
Appearance in the landscape is essential to a plant’s usefulness. For most landscapes, a plant’s natural form is best.
Avoid shearing shrubs into tight geometrical forms unless they need to be confined or trained for a specific purpose. When plants are properly pruned, it’s hard to tell that they’ve been pruned.
- Controls plant size and shape.
- Keeps shrubby evergreens well-proportioned and dense.
- Removes unwanted branches, waterspouts, suckers and undesirable fruiting structures that detract from plant appearance.
Prune to protect people and property
- Remove dead branches.
- Have hazardous trees taken down.
- Prune out weak or narrow-angled tree branches that overhang homes, parking areas, sidewalks and anyplace falling limbs could injure people or damage property.
- Eliminate branches that interfere with street lights, traffic signals and overhead wires.
- DO NOT attempt to prune near electrical and utility wires. Contact utility companies or city maintenance workers to handle it.
The right tools make pruning easier and help you do a good job. Keeping tools well-maintained and sharp will improve their performance. There are many tools for pruning, but the following will probably suffice for most applications:
- A good pair of pruning shears is probably one of the most important tools. Cuts up to 3/4 inches in diameter may be made with them.
- Lopping shears are similar to pruning shears, but their long handles provide greater leverage needed to cut branches up to 1 1/2 inches in diameter.
- Hedge shears are meant only for pruning hedges, nothing else. They usually cut succulent or small stems best.
- Hand saws are very important for cutting branches over 1 inch in diameter. Many types of hand saws are available. Special tri-cut or razor tooth pruning saws cut through larger branches – up to 4 inches in diameter – with ease.
- Pole saws allow for extended reach with a long handle, but they must be used carefully as it is difficult to achieve clean cuts with them.
- Small chain saws are available for use on larger branches. Operators must wear protective clothing and exercise caution when using them. Never use chain saws to reach above your shoulders, or when you are on a ladder.
How to prune trees and shrubs
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Plus sign (+) if content is closed, ‘X’ if content is open.General pruning guidelines
- Remove diseased, broken or dead branches.
- Remove any downward-growing branches.
- If two limbs are crossed, entangled or otherwise competing, remove one of them completely at its base.
- Remove any limbs along the trunk that are bigger in diameter than the trunk.
- Remove suckers coming up from the roots or low on the trunk.
- Remove vigorous vertical branches, called watersprouts.
- Make pruning cuts close to the branch collar at the base of the limb.
- For larger limbs, start the cut from the underside of the limb to avoid tearing the bark.
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Pruning and training young trees and shrubs
Pruning begins at planting time
Pruning is really the best preventive maintenance for young plants. It is critical for young trees to be trained to encourage them to develop a strong structure.
Young trees pruned improperly or not pruned at all for several years may require heavy pruning to remove bigger branches to prevent trees from becoming deformed.
At planting, remove only diseased, dead or broken branches. Begin training a plant during the dormant season following planting.
- Prune to shape young trees, but don’t cut back the leader.
- Remove crossing branches and branches that grow back towards the center of the tree.
- As young trees grow, remove lower branches gradually to raise the crown, and remove branches that are too closely spaced on the trunk.
- Remove multiple leaders on evergreens and other trees where a single leader is desirable.
Shrubs
Pruning young shrubs is not as critical as pruning young trees, but take care to use the same principles to encourage good branch structure. Container-grown shrubs require little pruning.
- When planting deciduous shrubs, thin out branches for good spacing and prune out any broken, diseased or crossing or circling roots.
- When planting deciduous shrubs for hedges, prune each plant to within 6 inches of the ground.
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Pruning established trees
Leave the pruning of large trees to qualified tree care professionals who have the proper equipment. Consider the natural form of large trees whenever possible. Most hardwood trees have rounded crowns that lack a strong leader and may have many lateral branches.
The most common types of tree pruning are:
- Crown thinning – selectively removing branches on young trees throughout the crown. This promotes better form and health by increasing light penetration and air movement. Strong emphasis is on removing weak branches. (Don’t overdo it on mature trees.)
- Crown raising – removing lower branches on developing or mature trees to allow more clearance above lawns, sidewalks, streets, etc.
- Crown reduction – removing larger branches at the top of the tree to reduce its height. When done properly, crown reduction pruning is different from topping because branches are removed immediately above lateral branches, leaving no stubs. Crown reduction is the least desirable pruning practice. It should be done only when absolutely necessary.
- Crown cleaning – the selective removal of dead, dying and diseased wood from the crown.
Proper branch pruning
- To shorten a branch or twig, cut it back to a side branch or make the cut about 1/4 inch above the bud.
- Always prune above a bud facing the outside of a plant to force the new branch to grow in that direction.
Pruning large branches
To remove large branches, three or four cuts will be necessary to avoid tearing the bark.
- Make the first cut on the underside of the branch about 18 inches from the trunk.
- Undercut one-third to one-half way through the branch.
- Make the second cut an inch further out on the branch; cut until the branch breaks free.
Before making the final cut severing a branch from the main stem, identify the branch collar.
- The branch collar grows from the stem tissue around the base of the branch.
- Make pruning cuts so that only branch tissue (wood on the branch side of the collar) is removed.
- Be careful to prune just beyond the branch collar, but DON’T leave a stub.
- If the branch collar is left intact after pruning, the wound will seal more effectively and stem tissue probably will not decay.
The third cut may be made by cutting down through the branch, severing it. If, during removal, there is a possibility of tearing the bark on the branch underside, make an undercut first and then saw through the branch.
Wound dressing is not normally needed on pruning cuts. However, if wounds need to be covered to prevent insect transmission of certain diseases such as oak wilt, use latex rather than oil-based paint.
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How to prune apple trees (videos)
9 Responses to To Burlap Or Not To Burlap… That Is The Question!
I live in Winnipeg and find not wrapping my cedar trees a big mistake, not so much because the sun may hurt them, but more the deer will eat them till there is only the tops left, so I stake and wrap them and don’t have problems from deer or rabbits, works for me.
Please do not advocate stringing fishing line around cedars. It is deadly to birds..
Ozz
I just planted 10 Cedar Trees in my backyard around 5″ tall (August 25th, 2020), and wonder if I should cover them for the winter or just use a fishing line?
I live in Sutton Qc ( skying region ) with lots of deer the best way to protect your cedars, first plant a post beside your cedar and wrap a plastic nylon fence ( with openings ) start by attaching both the post and nylon fence with nylon ties than wrap both the post and cedar together starting at the bottom working your way up ( wrap semi tight ) attach with ties
Robert Lefebvre
I forgot to mention , if your cedars were devastated by deers cut the top part of the head off a minimum of two inches, the side of your cedar will replenish itself back to where it was! Make sure you cover them for the next winter or this time you will loose them
Can you please let me know what type/brand/specs of fishing line to use? I have young cedars that were recently purchased in 9 inch pots that were planted late summer in my back yard in Mississauga. Can you please advise how best to protect this for the winter. I was not prepared for the snowfall yesterday which had quite an impact on all the 10 cedars I planted and had to continuously brush of the show from the plants that were weighing down the branches. If you recommend burlap for the first winter or two, how do I cover the plant with burlap?
Thank you,
Nikhil
