5 Reasons to Prune a Tree

Pruning trees is important. But, while pruning and trimming trees seem simple, you may wonder why we need to prune trees in the first place. After all, trees have been growing in central Virginia forests for hundreds of years without being trimmed. But suppose you look closely at an unpruned tree. In that case, you’ll see that it often has broken branches, an unappealing or lopsided shape, bare spots, and many other problems.

Tree pruning or trimming is an essential part of keeping trees in urban and suburban areas of Virginia safe, attractive, and healthy. There are several reasons why homeowners choose to have their trees professionally pruned:

1. Pruning encourages healthy growth
2. Pruning prevents the spread of disease
3. Fruit tree pruning maximizes harvest
4. Tree trimming reduces hazards and makes trees safer
5. Pruning trees saves you money

What is Tree Pruning?

Simply put, pruning refers to the removal of tree branches.

Depending on the size of the branch, a variety of tools are used for pruning, such as loppers, pole pruners, hand saws, and chainsaws. The size of the tree also matters; to properly cut back branches on a large tree, tree service companies may send a climber into the tree or use equipment like a crane, spider lift, bucket truck, chip trucks, and more.

You may hear “pruning” and “trimming” used interchangeably. Tree service companies may have a specific preference for one or the other, but the terms are often used to mean the same thing.

What Are the Benefits of Tree Pruning?

1. Pruning Removes Dead Branches to Encourage Healthy Growth

All trees will benefit from pruning eventually. Cutting out dead or dying branches allows your tree to use energy to create new, healthy growth. Removing these branches will make your tree look better and strengthen its roots.

Proper pruning isn’t only about making your tree look good. By strategically cutting back and removing certain branches, your tree trimmer can help balance a tree to reduce the risk of your tree toppling over in high winds or heavy rains. This keeps your tree growing strong over the long term and helps you avoid future tree issues that come with unpruned trees.

2. Tree Pruning Can Prevent the Spread of Disease

If a fungus or other disease has infected part of your tree and can’t easily be treated, removing the infected branches can stop the infection from spreading. This can keep your healthy branches free from the effects of the disease.

3. Pruning Fruit Trees Maximizes Your Harvest

Pruning fruit trees encourages fruit production – but only if it’s done correctly and at the right time of year. By removing dead or dying branches, the tree will naturally use its energy for new growth, which includes its fruit. Many Virginia fruit trees can benefit from proper pruning, including:

• Apple
• Crabapple
• Pear
• Black cherry
• Elderberry
• Persimmon
• Plum
• Serviceberry

4. Unpruned Trees Can Be Dangerous

There are several dangers that regular pruning can help you avoid. The most obvious is the threat of unpruned branches falling and injuring people or property. There are also less apparent risks associated with unpruned trees:

• Contact with powerlines creates fire risk, power outages, and possible electrocution.
• Hitting houses or other human-made structures and damaging gutters, windows, roofs, etc.
• Visibility issues leading to accidents involving cars, bicyclists, and pedestrians.

These dangers are all avoidable with regular, professional tree maintenance. Keeping trees cut back and properly pruned will help you avoid these accidents, associated costs, and liabilities.

5. Pruning Trees Saves You Money

While pruning your tree yourself is an option, mistakes can cost you more in the long run. You will want to hire a tree service for large trees or corrective pruning to ensure the job is done safely and correctly.

Large trees can’t easily be replaced, and you don’t want to lose the benefits of privacy, curb appeal, and shade during the hot Virginia summers. Proper pruning keeps them healthy and attractive longer so you can continue reaping the benefits.

Regular pruning is a worthwhile investment in your tree’s future. If trees go untrimmed, you run the risk of disease, broken or fallen branches, damage to nearby structures, lopsided growth, and even tree death. In these cases, you must pay for treatment or possibly tree removal.

Do you have trees that need to be pruned?

We’re third-generation tree specialists who are happy to answer questions about which trees need pruning and the best time of year to prune your trees. Contact ZZ Tree today for a free pruning quote. Whether you’re located in Richmond, Fredericksburg, Mechanicsville, or any other part of central or northern Virginia, our experienced pruning crews will leave your trees healthier and better looking.