Tree Pruning

By Thembi Borras

The refreshing spring-like weather reminds me I need to prune my fruit trees. Whether you are pruning fruit trees for increased fruit production and structural integrity; ornamental and/or shade trees for health, safety and appearance; trees in a forest for fire hazard reduction, aesthetics and improved timber quality; or trees along roads for a fuel break or to dry out the road surface faster, pruning well will facilitate meeting these goals. Pruning fruit trees is not the subject of this production. Once a year when I endeavor to prune my fruit trees I reference the thin, small book How to Prune Fruit Trees by R. Sanford Martin. The following techniques and considerations embody proper pruning:

1. Make pruning cuts where two limbs intersect or where limbs intersect the main tree trunk.
2. Avoid "flush cuts" which remove the branch bark collar or "stub cuts" which leave branch stubs protruding.
3. When necessary, reduce the tree height of hardwoods by selectively removing upper branches. Tree removal and replacement with a smaller growing species may be preferable to tree topping which can be damaging.
4. For large limbs, make an undercut so that when the branch separates it doesn't strip off bark from the bole of the tree.
5. Use shears or a saw designed for pruning and keep them sharpened. Use a chain saw only for limbs too large for hand tools. Never use an axe. Use recommended safety equipment, such as eye protection, hard hat, gloves and sturdy footwear.
6. Where access and logistics allow, prune during the winter, which is the slower growing or dormant season when the sap is flowing less.
7. In the forest, all limbs can be removed up to a height of 18 feet from larger hardwood and conifer trees, but the highest cut will be limited by the reach of your equipment. This is a good height for aesthetic enhancement and fire hazard reduction and will improve timber quality in the first 16 feet. Although, pruning conifers can improve the quality of the first most valuable log, this added expense and time might not yield a better price at the mill. Smaller trees should be pruned in stages, retaining approximately 40 percent of the total height in live green branches after pruning.

Go to http://www.dnr.wa.gov/htdocs/rp/stewardship/bfs/WESTERN/pruning.html, from which this production was gleaned, to access this information and illustrations of proper pruning cuts.