When to trim branches off trees?

[AlbertC]

I have another question, I need to cut the lower branches off a lot of trees on my property with a pole saw. Is there a certain time of the year that I need to do this. If i do it now or over the winter, I can burn the limbs this burning season. If I have to wait until spring the burning season will have passed and I will have to wait until oct 2016 to burn the limbs.

My concern is if I cut the limbs off over the winter the cut may not be able to scab over and will weaken the tree or make it more susceptible to rot or insects. Anyone have any info on this?

Thank you very much!

 

[bcp]

Type of tree might make a difference. Apple vs pine, for example.

Bruce

 

[MoKelly]

I've always heard the best time to prune trees is in late Fall/early winter after the leaves have fallen. You should leave a little nub where the branch was and not trim flush with the trunk.

MoKelly

 

[davesl708]

Usually cut in winter after the leaves are down and the sap has receded. Before the sap rises in the spring. This will help the tree heal from the cut and help reduce the risk of disease.

 

[bigtiller]

Trim storm damage when it happens. Trim nut trees like oak and walnut December - February and shade trees December - March.

 

[oosik]

The recommendation for fruit trees is late February to early April.

 

[TnAndy]

The best time to trim is when you're standing next to the tree with a trimming tool in hand.

 

[4570Man]

I trim trees whenever I get pissed off enough from getting hit mowing to bother trimming them. I have never had any problems whacking a few limbs off the bottom. A serious whole tree trimming might be another story.

 

[nybirdman]

I asked the same question to an apple orchard owner;he said he had to trim year-round to keep up.Just a few trees I would wait until cold weather.

 

[tcartwri]

The second hottest day of the year. The first hottest is for doing hay....

 

[buckeyefarmer]

Usually when swmbo says they need trimmed, although I have been putting it off.

 

[bdog]

We trimmed our trees about three weeks ago. I have a 25' trailer and we hauled 9 heaping loads of branches to the burn pit.

 

[JimRB]

In the chainsaw/tree forum elsewhere on the interwebs, someone had mentioned that trimming of some trees needs to be done in the dead of the winter because of infection. I do not recall the infection but it was less risky to trim that particular type of tree when a fungus or other harmful thing was inactive. I trim the annoying branches when they get too annoying, Winter or summer. Branches weigh less in the winter though with no leaves.

 

[GLyford]

I find the branches hang lower when leafed out, so I don't know which ones I will hit my head on until then. I will cut them then while I am thinking about it, and so I only get annoyed once, rather than every time I go under them and hit my head until I get around to it.

Certain ones will have the additional limitation that they have to be cut when my wife isn't around to complain, otherwise I am stuck walking into them.

While live branches for certain trees should be cut at certain times of the year, as listed above, every article on pruning I have read says dead wood can be removed at any time.

There's been a few which have been best served by very radical pruning, at about an inch above the ground, full across. But then we're back to your other question...

 

[EddieWalker]

I've always heard that the best time in during winter when the tree is dormant. This results in the lease amount of shock to the tree.

I've observed branches falling off of trees year round, and it doesn't seem to affect the overall health of the tree. Seems like they trim themselves any time of the year, and so do I. Just wish we could get together on what branches should break off on their own!!!

There was a time when I had a lot of reverence for a tree. Now I look at them as weeds that I have to do battle with. Three times yesterday after work I got smacked in the face by branches catching on my canopy and then my face. The only solution is to prune them now as far up as I can get!!!!

 

[Danno1]

.



What everyone else said.

But I'll add one thing. If you have a slow growing tree, cutting it in the dead of winter will make it "think" in the spring that it was storm damage. That will cause it to grow more vigorously for that summer. If you have a fast growing weed, prune it in the middle of summer to slow down the following years growth.


Oh, also, prune no more than 1/3 of the total branches MAX.



.

 

[GLyford]

Depends on the type of bush and the microclimate. Trimmed a forsythia back to a foot high to allow ladder work on the house, it's back to it's 8' tall normal self, happy as anything and due for another trim. And yet the ones on my property line I can only trim out the deadwood or they just get thin and rangy looking, they don't fill back in very well at all, even following the "only a third" rule.

I have a euonymus that I have trimmed back to a stump about every 4 years, and each time it is back to 12' high and 16' wide within a couple of years. The last time I cut it back it was so I could pull out a 15' maple tree that was growing next to the trunk. After I put the truck and chain away my wife and I looked at each other and said "we pulled the wrong one..."

 

[CobyRupert]

The best time to trim is when you're standing next to the tree with a trimming tool in hand.

:thumbsup: This usually occurs just after they've knocked your hat off or ripped your shirt. Trim enough so they've learned their lesson (for a few years)!
Arborist I ain't!