Here’s the Easiest Way to Make Overgrown Trees on Your Property Look Great Again

Though lots of homeowners use the terms interchangeably, there is a difference between tree trimming and tree pruning. “Tree trimming” is basically done with just aesthetics in mind; its goal is to make your trees look well-rounded and even. Though a good tree maintenance professional won’t harm your trees while trimming them, tree health is not the primary purpose of a trim.

Tree pruning, on the other hand, places health front and center. Pruning is the removal of key branches (including branches that are dead, diseased, or growing in dangerous/inconvenient directions). Tree pruning removes “dead end” branches, allowing your tree to focus its resources on its healthy branches. This, in turn, promotes healthy growth and reduces the likelihood that you’ll run into difficult or dangerous obstacles – like property damage or injuries caused by fallen dead branches – in the future. When done diligently on healthy trees, pruning is needed less and less frequently over time.

Whether you’re looking to remove problem branches or to simply spruce up the overall appearance of your property, it’s a good idea to have a skilled tree care specialist assess your trees in order to determine the best course of action.

It might be tempting to try your hand at tree pruning, or to ask a friendly neighbor to lend a (slightly more experienced) hand. At the risk of sounding a bit biased (all we ask is that you hear us out on this), our recommendation is that you entrust your tree pruning to a tree care professional. Tree pruning is a delicate process that requires an expert eye (and hand) in order to be done as effectively and safely as possible, both for the tree itself and for the person doing the cutting. Several elements must be taken into consideration when overseeing a tree pruning process.

• How sparse and/or dense are the tree’s branches, and how should this change in order to promote optimal health and growth?
• Is it enough to remove parts of a limb, or should the entire limb go? Is a limb sparse due to natural causes, or is it a sign of underlying disease that should be further investigated?
• Is the tree at risk of encroaching onto a neighbor’s property or hitting any power lines? If so, how can it be pruned in order to prevent this while promoting health?

Entrusting your tree care to a professional is about more than just getting the best look or making it easier for yourself; it’s about being able to rest assured that your trees are as well taken care of as possible. If you’re dealing with overgrown trees, we highly recommend that you bring in a trustworthy professional to assess and prune them.