Top Mistakes Made When Trimming and Pruning Your Trees & Shrubs

As a full-service landscaping company, so often we take over the management of properties that have not been properly cared for. This is nothing to be ashamed of, and as a local business, we understand the desire to save money and DIY. Oftentimes these DIY landscapes are totally fine in a few different categories, like lawn care for example. If best practices are followed, anyone can maintain a great lawn by keeping mowing heights high, fertilizing, and staying on the lookout for decay. However, some more specialized services are understandably lacking. Tree care is one of these, as it takes no less than an arborist for the highest quality work. In this blog, we want to go over some of the top mistakes we see when it comes to trimming and pruning your trees and shrubs.

Improper Equipment and Tools

It is very important to know exactly what you are pruning and why because the tools required are not always the same. Smaller shrubs and plant material can actually be pruned by hand, removing foliage at the base. For those in between shrubs and small trees, shears are going to be your best bet. They also need to be sharp for maximum effectiveness, and the same rings true for a chainsaw if you are pruning a large tree. Using the wrong tool on the wrong piece of plant material can lead to poor results.

Pruning in the Wrong Season

Like many of the mistakes on this list, this is going to depend on the particular type and variety of plant material. For trees in Maryland, the best time to prune is between late February and early March. All other plant material including shrubs would be best pruned in the wintertime. Timing is important as pruning stimulates new growth, so pruning in the fall could stimulate growth right as you move into a season of dormancy.

Removing Healthy Material

While sometimes you may remove healthy foliage from your plant material if it’s growing too close to a structure, or in the wrong direction, it is to be avoided. The primary purpose of pruning is to remove decayed foliage so it can be replaced by healthy material. Only foliage that is diseased, decayed, or dead should be removed, and this is to prevent the spread of the decay, as well as falling limbs during a storm. Removal of healthy material is akin to cutting off a finger and is detrimental to the well-being of your plant material.

Poor Quality of Work

There is a reason we do not recommend DIY when it comes to pruning, and it goes well beyond our desire for you to use our services. Pruning can be a dangerous task, especially in large trees. Additionally, there are proper ways to make cuts, and professionals are trained to identify the right material to trim. Leave the trimming and pruning to our team at OakLawn and avoid the potential of any of these mistakes.

Your landscaping is the first thing noticed by your visitors, friends, and customers. Let OakLawn Landscaping ensure that your first impressions are top-notch and have your guests in awe before they even reach the door. Visit our website, or contact us today at (301) 854-0684 for any of your landscaping needs, commercial or residential.