Tree care advice from professional arborists in the Southern Lakes area
Fruit trees (and most deciduous trees) are best pruned in winter or early spring, before they blossom. Pruning while the tree is dormant lessens the impact. Allows the sap and stored nutrients to remain with the tree, and lets the tree compensate with the new growth the following spring.
- Flowering trees are best pruned just after they blossom, as this encourages more flowering next season. Magnolia, celmesia, rhododendrons etc.
- Young trees should be formatively pruned to remove weak junctions such as double leaders, (when the tree develops two or more parallel trunks with an acute angle between them at the join) crossed or poorly positioned branches can also be removed. Shaping a tree gradually as it grows allows a more natural look to be achieved rather than drastically altering it once it is considered a problem.
- Trees do not grow like grass so giving it a good haircut similarly to the way we treat our lawns or hair is not recommended. Trees do not heal, any cut or damage remains with the tree until it dies. Small cuts can be “compartmentalised” – grown over and sealed off. Larger cuts will take much longer to cover over, and remain open to insects, fungi and weather, potentially weakening or killing the tree.
