Do You Believe These 5 Common Tree Pruning Myths?

Many homeowners understand the importance of pruning their property’s trees so their landscape looks great. Unfortunately, a lot of homeowners also buy into harmful untruths about tree pruning. Here are five common myths concerning pruning trees for homeowners to overcome.

1. Cutting Close to the Trunk Helps the Tree Heal Faster

Instead of healing themselves by replacing lost and damaged tissue, trees instead grow new layers of wood. That is why homeowners must make sure the pruning company they hire protects the tree’s branch collar and doesn’t prune too closely to the parent limb.

2. Trees Do Not Need Pruning To Grow Strong and Healthy

While untamed trees in the forest grow fine on their own without pruning, trees on residential properties do not share that independence. To keep their shape, residential trees need tree pruning. While pruning helps trees grow better, property owners must ensure the company they hire does not get rid of more than a third of the tree’s crown in a single pruning.

3. Pruning Tree Wounds Over Three Inches Requires Wound Dressing 

Tree service companies use petroleum-based tree wound sealants and dressings to seal cut wood and keep it safe from insect infestation and decay. The truth is, wound dressings impede new wood growth, trigger decay, seal moisture and block compartmentalization. 

4. Pruning the Tree’s Crown Compensates for Root Loss

After transplanting a tree, it does little good to prune it if it doesn’t have broken or dead branches. Younger trees need their crowns intact to compensate for their lost roots. Homeowners should keep pruning to a minimum for the first three years of a newly planted tree’s life.

5. Pruning Some Trees in the Spring Causes Health Problems

While trees like birches and maples bleed when cut in the spring, the bleeding does not harm the tree. Most trees take to pruning well any time of the year.

Tree pruning brings out a tree’s beauty, but only when done correctly. Separating fact from myth keeps trees and homeowners happy.