Text size:

Pruning Trees

House Doctor | Gary Dymski

February 21, 2002

ARCHITECT Frank Lloyd Wright called them "man's best friend."

Poet William Cullen Bryant called them "God's first temples."

Indispensable and inspirational, trees are perhaps the most generous of plants. They provide shade, cleanse the air, shelter us from wind and enhance our property.

Yet, how we mistreat them.

House Doctor Recent columns

We drench them with too much water, crowd their space with finely manicured lawns, and, ouch, hack at their branches when we figure they need trimming.

"We can run away from our enemies; trees can't," says Jon Hickey, an arborist with Lehman Plant Care Co. in Hicksville.

One way to help trees stand tall is proper pruning. Winter, when trees are dormant, say experts like Hickey, is an excellent time to remove hazardous and dead branches.

How can you tell if your trees need pruning? Dead and decaying branches are one sure sign. These pieces of dead wood often fall to the ground after high winds and storms. Limbs that are split and cracked or that hang over rooftops, play areas, walkways and roads and near power lines are candidates for pruning, too. When such limbs are weighted by snow and freezing rain, they are hazardous. Branches that cross or are intertwined should be pruned.

A properly pruned tree allows sunlight and air to pass through its branches, and it provides nesting areas for birds.

And you shouldn't just go hacking away at it.

"If there's a rule of thumb on pruning, it's to wait until the tree is dormant," says Tom Kowalsick of the Cornell Cooperative Extension-Suffolk County. "That time is late winter or early, early spring."

Studies show that trees pruned when dormant can respond more efficiently to closing a wound, Kowalsick says.

"The first criteria on pruning is safety," Hickey says, "then you can worry about aesthetics. Areas with high traffic, with children, those branches should be pruned, regardless of the season."

Whom can you trust to prune your trees? Can you prune them yourself? If you can, what's the proper procedure, and how do you know which branches to prune?

First, pick a certified arborist to inspect and supervise, regardless of who does the pruning. "I've always told homeowners that they shouldn't treat horticulture any differently than any other important purchase," Kowalsick says. "A certified arborist is educated and trained, must pass specific exams and will stay up-to-date with what's going on in the industry."

Hickey, a member of the Long Island Arboricultural Association with 50 years of experience in what he calls the "green industry," says companies will advertise that a certified arborist is on staff. "Companies are not certified; individuals are," he says. "The company, however, should be licensed and insured, and be well-established." Many companies have professional affiliations, such as membership in the National Arborist Association or the New York State Arborists. (Search for a member in your area by typing in your ZIP code on the National Arborist Association Web site, www.natlarb .com.)

Most reputable companies will consult with homeowners and provide a written estimate, Hickey says. In some cases, a consultation fee is required. However, if the homeowner selects that company to do the work, the consultation fee usually is waived.

Hickey says estimates should detail the sizes of branches to be removed - for example, 2 1/2 inches in diameter or greater - and include the amount of time a job will take. Labor rates for the industry on Long Island and the metropolitan area range from $50 to $70 per hour. "This is often a good time to contract pruning because companies want to keep their crews working through the winter," Hickey says.

Also, when trees are devoid of leaves, the branches and stem are easier to examine and prune. Some owners of large shade trees such as birches and maples may worry about pruning this time of year because cuts allow the sap to run. "Having the sap run does not harm the tree, but it can be disconcerting to a homeowner," says Hickey, who graduated with a degree in ornamental horticulture from SUNY Farmingdale. "No way does the sap run from the tree and the tree 'bleeds to death.'"

While homeowners can prune their own trees, how many want to climb 20 feet or higher to saw at branches in bitter cold, or use long-arm pruners and polesaws, tools designed to reach up from the ground to make cuts? Perhaps the most economical way to keep trees properly pruned is for homeowners to prune smaller, lower branches, in the early, early spring (before leaves and buds appear), then leave the big stuff to the professionals.