7 Common Pruning Mistakes To Avoid

Regular pruning helps boost the health of your trees and make your property safer. However, improper pruning of the trees can lead to irreversible damage. Avoid the following pruning mistakes to protect the beauty and health of your shrubs and trees.

1. Pruning Without a Goal

You don't decide to prune your trees or shrubs without any reason. Instead, the pruning process must have a specific goal, such as increasing flower or fruit production or getting rid of dead limbs. Without a goal, your pruning can interfere with the overall health of your plants. Frequent and improper pruning can cause irreversible harm or take a long time and effort to fix.

2. Pruning at the Wrong Time of Year

Ideally, you should prune your plants and shrubs in winter when they are dormant. However, this is not always the case, and you should do some research about the specific plants in your home. For example, plum and cherry trees are prone to silver leaf disease and can become infected if you prune them during the cold months. As a result, you should prune these trees in summer.

Also, many people prune flowering plants as soon as the plants finish flowering.

3. Pruning Excessively 

Leaves generate carbohydrates during photosynthesis, while stems store the carbohydrates. Pruning affects these two tree parts and can cause a shortage of carbohydrates. If you cut too many leaves and stems from the tree, the plant might take several years to recover and regain sufficient carbohydrates. In some cases, excessive pruning can force the plant to produce too many leaves instead of fruits and flowers.

Therefore, get advice from a tree pruning service about how much material you should remove from your tree during pruning. However, some rare occasions require that you do a hard prune. 

4. Cutting Back the Longest Branches in the Summer

Conifers tend to grow quickly and get too large in summer. The conifers will get in the way of people and interfere with visibility in your yard. Naturally, you will want to remove the limb that causes the problem, but you may cut further back than necessary. You may also leave a branch stub poking out so far that it presents a hazard. 

Conifers rarely recover if you prune them incorrectly. That is because the growth of new conifers is from the buds located at the end of the branches. Improper cutting means that you will get rid of the buds and leave a permanent stub. Not only is the stub ugly, but it can also damage the rest of the tree. 

5. Using Dirty Pruning Tools

Effective tree pruning requires high-quality pruning tools. Regularly clean and oil your pruning tools so that they can last longer and perform better. Dirty pruning tools will accumulate bacteria and viruses, which will eventually end up on your plants and infect them. Additionally, if the tools become blunt because of excessive tree residue buildup over time, they won't make proper cuts. When this is the case, you should invest in a new pair of pruning shears.

6. Failing to Remove Suckers

Suckers are growths on the tree's root system that helps the plant to produce more fruits. However, the suckers will take nutrients from other parts of the plant. The result is that the fruits will be smaller, particularly if the suckers grow out of control. Proper pruning is knowing when and how to cut suckers to enable your plants to produce more fruit while remaining more compact.

6. Topping a Tree

Trees sometimes outgrow their allotted space, prompting some homeowners to cut off the top. While topping can reduce further growth, it will eventually weaken the tree. As a result, the tree will go into shock and try to fix the damage quickly before starting to regrow. The best approach to avoid having to top your tree is to grow a tree that won't outgrow the allotted space.

Cadieu Tree Experts provides commercial and residential customers with affordable and quick tree services. Our friendly staff is ready to offer affordable services that meet your satisfaction. Contact us for various tree services, such as tree removal and stump grinding.