There are many different options for trimming, but for the most part, the tree lets our arborist know what needs to be done, and we simply relay the message to you.
In “Urban Forestry,” tree trimming or pruning is often desirable or necessary to remove dead branches, improve tree structure, enhance vigor, or maintain safety.
Our Tree Trimming Services:
Target Trimming / Crown Raising
Target trimming or ‘crown raising’ is the practice of trimming the tree to grow in a desired direction away from power lines, buildings, other trees, etc. We follow the branch down from the apex of the limb until we find a suitable place to make a head cut, transferring growth and energy in a different direction.
Deadwooding / Crown Cleaning
Deadwooding or ‘crown cleaning’ is the selective removal of dead, diseased, broken, or weak branches from the tree’s crown (canopy). When regular pruning like this is done, it corrects minor growth problems before they have a chance to become more significant and expensive problems.
Thinning / Structure Pruning
Structure pruning or ‘thinning’ is a preventative and purposeful trimming technique we recommend for most trees. This process involves selecting live, healthy branches for removal that we foresee eventually crowding other branches, which without intervention, drains nutrients from the tree. If crown cleaning or ‘dead wooding’ were performed without the structural pruning at the same time, we would have to revisit the tree every two years for upkeep as opposed to the complete structural pruning that lasts for 5-7 years.
Fruit Prunes / Pollarding
Fruit Prunes and Pollarding go hand in hand; the only difference is Pollarding is an annual pruning practice, whereas Fruit Prunes are every 2-3 years. This is one of the only times it is acceptable to “top” a tree. Unlike broadleaf and evergreen trees, fruit trees produce tangible, edible fruit that needs to be harvested. In keeping fruit trees low to the ground, it’s not only easier to pick the fruit, but it also keeps the weight of the fruit more centered on the tree’s unions.