Pruning Trees For Landscaping

Trees require regular pruning and shaping to maintain their health, beauty, and usefulness. Overgrown trees can become a hazard by creating excessive shade, restricting airflow, reducing their neighbors' health, and dragging branches against eaves, roof shingles, or foundation walls. However, there is such a thing as too much pruning! (The tree may die!) The best way to preserve natural tree form while still allowing some training is also one of the oldest techniques in horticulture: coppicing. Coppiced trees have been cut back regularly so that new growth develops from their lateral branches rather than terminal buds located at the ends of branches. The result is that regular maintenance cuts leave a tree with multiple, evenly spaced trunks rather than a single trunk.

How to Prune Trees for Landscaping

Pruning trees and shrubs correctly will ensure healthy growth and shape while keeping them within the confines of the landscape design established by the homeowner. Overgrown or unruly species create excess shade, loss of airflow in dense plantings which can weaken neighbors and cause window screens to rust due to condensation, foundation problems because of undue weight on walls or roof drains, or even block driveways! There are several approaches to pruning—the one that seems most effective depends on your objectives as well as the type of tree you're working with.

Approach 1: Stump Pruning/Coppicing - for trees, shrubs, and perennials that produce new growth at the tips of their stems in a branching pattern. The basic idea is to cut back all, but one (or two) shoots so that you end up with several large trunks scattered around the plant. These can be further shaped into decorative forms as desired. As long as they are kept properly trimmed, these plants will grow quite effectively without a single main trunk like those seen on bonsai or banyan trees, for example. Applying fertilizers to a stump rather than just concentrating them in one area of the tree promotes maximum growth from all branches, which helps keep even such high-maintenance plants from becoming overgrown.

Pruning trees and shrubs correctly will ensure healthy growth and shape while keeping them under control in the landscape design established by the homeowner. Overgrown or unruly species create excess shade and airflow in dense plantings, which can weaken neighbors and cause foundation problems because of undue weight on walls or roof drains or even block driveways! There are several approaches to pruning—the one that seems most effective depends on your objectives as well as the type of tree you're working with.

Approaches to Pruning: 1) By cutting back all lateral growths, you will stimulate growth at the tips of stems leading to a bushy plant with multiple trunks or flanking branches. 2) Heavy pruning followed by fertilizers or manures applied to buds and wounds will stimulate faster, more vigorous growth. 3) When you have several plants in a clump, cut back the ripest one(s).

Approach 2: Thinning, Pruning Back & Shearing - trees, shrubs, and perennials that produce new growth at intervals along their stems in an even pattern. The basic idea is to remove branches so that light reaches between them, allowing plants like azaleas or other broadleaf evergreens to thrive in the shade of taller deciduous trees if desired. For example, shearing boxwood creates low, wide hedges while regular trimming backs Japanese maples and ficus species to make them less imposing though still attractive to neighbors.

Thick trees can create shade, reduce airflow and otherwise be a problem for their neighbors. Pruning them while they're young makes future pruning much easier while rewarding you with beautiful shapes and foliage that seem incapable of growing naturally! To establish shape, it is usually best to decide what you want first – then prune accordingly. For tall, full-bodied plants like this weeping maple (Acer palmatum), the goal was to make it less top-heavy by thinning out some branches near the plant base so that light would reach the bottom. Pruned in early spring when growth is just beginning, these cuts will heal quickly for continued shaping later in the season if needed or desired. a

Branches left on this ficus retusa were thinned out to make it less top-heavy.

Approach 3: Selective Pruning - for trees, shrubs, and perennials that produce new growth at intervals along their stems in a branching pattern that is not necessarily uniform around the clump or tree. The basic idea is to remove some branches, leaving others intact to create an interesting form with foliage, twigs, or other decorative features concentrated around major limbs so you can place them strategically throughout your landscape design. For example, boxwood hedges trimmed regularly assume low, rounded shapes perfect for placing between paving stones – though they would also look good as living fences around the property line!

The goal of this white pine was to create a formal top with more random-shaped limbs at the bottom on the front side of the tree. The result is an asymmetrical shape that will slowly become more balanced as it matures without making permanent changes.

Asymmetry in trees and shrubs is often pleasing – especially when new growth pruned selectively brings out the best features of each plant by leaving some parts intact while allowing others to grow freely. It's all a matter of approaching problems strategically rather than reacting negatively to them!

Shaping a tree begins with determining what you want to achieve regarding overall form, height, and branch placement before doing anything else! You can't make broad changes after basic training, so now decide how you want things done around your property.

Tools for Shaping Trees: Hand Shears & Loppers - If you like the idea of pruning shrubs and trees yourself but don't want to invest in expensive electric tools, there are a variety of hand shears, loppers, and knives available at reasonable prices.

These allow anyone to control small limbs, cut back overhanging branches or shape small plants without a great deal of effort. They all work well on the large tools from April through September as long as you wear gloves and take care not to pinch your skin between the blades! To make things easier, carry a sharp knife-like file with you so that you can sharpen the blades on-site when they begin to dull after repeated use. Spring is the ideal time for shaping trees and shrubs because growth is just beginning so that cuts will heal quickly. However, pruning should never be done in freezing weather or if there's a chance of ice, snow, or rain within two days after treatment occurs. This means you'll need to get up early on many mornings or work late into the evening when most tasks are completed anyway!

Short Plastic Rakes - After you've removed suckers from young trees (see below) and have made thinning cuts back to healthy branches, use a short plastic rake with large teeth to remove the remaining small pieces of unwanted foliage. It's easy to use but be careful not to break the tender stems as it works best when moving slowly around plants rather than pushing down hard with constant pressure. There's nothing worse than having a tool do more damage to plants than you intended!

A rake is also handy for removing leaves from newly planted trees and shrubs so that sun can reach their root systems. Plus, before you mulch the ground surrounding tender new plants, use your hands or large scissors to clip off any remaining foliage that will rot at the base of the stem and suffocate roots. The idea is to expose as many bare woody stems as possible, which will dry quickly in spring weather, giving them less opportunity to overwinter successfully until new growth begins again next year. Digging around young trees may seem like an unnecessary step since roots have not yet been established, but it's best to leave no stone unturned regarding planting success!

Shoot Removal – This is one of the most important steps for shaping trees and often necessary to allow sunlight to reach lower branches. Most deciduous tree stems have buds at nodes which are areas where leaves emerge during growth. On an oak, flowering dogwood, or another spring bloomer, you may find 20-30 small buds beneath each leaf scar when new growth occurs, so it's best to remove just 5 or 6 pairs while leaving the others alone! If you don't, there will be far too much foliage coming out all over, causing branches to grow upward rather than outward, adding height and shade throughout the canopy. This is because young trees direct their resources into producing leaves rather than woody channels that grow straight up until they're tall enough to overcome gravity. If you've ever seen a tree with a trunk full of branches and almost no wood, then you've witnessed how little foliage there is to fuel this growth which is why it's best to limit growth early on so that future height occurs more rapidly.

Fast Growing Shoots – Remove any vigorous shoots that grow directly down from the branch collar (base) or up toward the main leader (top) because they'll divert resources away from other parts of the tree or shrub. This can impact plant form for years to come as it's difficult to redirect energy once it's been channeled in one direction for so long. To find shots look down at your feet rather than straight ahead when walking around your trees. Shoot removal saves time pruning in the future, and it's easier to see where growth is coming from when you're standing close to plants rather than looking at them from a distance. Spacing branches once per year also makes trees less attractive to birds which like to perch on slender parts of bark for protection, so this isn't just about aesthetics!

Shortened Sucker Growth – Suckers are stems that grow straight up and out of another stem or main leader by using photosynthesis occurring inside the tree trunk above to provide energy. They often occur at branch bases, near trunks, or even below ground level, although they seem most common on roots or stems near sidewalks where the soil has been compacted especially tightly. Once shoots have risen 4-6 inches above the ground, cut them back to the branch collar or main leader so that they can draw energy from above rather than depleting resources below. Suckers cause branches to grow upward and outward more slowly because of their position on a tree, so they should be removed whenever you see them unless your intention is for trees to have an open center with no lower growth.

What about weeds? Weeding trees ahead of time will save you time later when it's boiling out! If any weeds are growing beneath trees, now is the best time in the pre-growth season to remove them by hand or with a small tilling tool that won't disturb roots too much. This will speed up the growth process as new tender shoots won't be impeded by this competition for water.

Old Tree Removal – Deciduous trees such as maples and oaks develop old woody stems that make up the trunks once they are tall enough to overcome gravity. The problem is that a tree with a trunk full of branches will never grow straight up, and rarely will its lower limbs shade an area evenly, so it's best to remove older growth at least every 2 years or when you notice your tree beginning to look scraggly. This is especially important around flowering dogwoods and other spring bloomers because they'll send out new growth before leafing out, so this new growth can be removed quickly before it gets too much light. Use pruning shears rather than loppers for faster removal because loppers just pull the wood out, causing wounds that will take a long time to heal if you leave them.