Pruning low branches off of your trees may seem like a pointless maintenance task when it comes to your landscaping, however, it can multiple benefits that can help elevate your landscaping and contribute to the longevity and overall health of your trees.
What are the Reasons to Prune Low Branches?
Pruning Low Branches Promotes a Healthy Tree
Low branches, whether damages, diseased, or simply starting to sprout, will often require a lot of energy to grow. With your tree diverting so much energy to these lower branches, you’ll notice your tree will often start to die off or stop growing and blooming as much as what would be considered “normal.” This is because it isn’t diverting its energy properly. By pruning lower branches, you are helping guide your trees energy into more mature branches, thus helping to promote healthy growth, foliage, and blooms.
Improved Air Circulation and Sunlight Penetration
By pruning the low branches off of our trees, you are helping improve air circulation as well as allow for more sunlight to penetrate within the tree itself. Without sunlight, lower branches can become weak which can start to affect the overall structure of the tree. By eliminating the lower branches, you are allowing both sun and air to move throughout the whole tree easily, both of which are essential for healthy tree growth.
Contributes to the Overall Aesthetic
Regular pruning is a great habit to get into as it can help contribute to the overall appearance of the tree as a whole. A well pruned, and thus, well-shaped tree, is far more appealing than a tree that has branches growing in all directions of all lengths. If you’re hoping to boost your curb appeal, regular pruning is a great way to ensure that your landscaping looks its best at all times.
Prevents Pests and Diseases
Any dead or dying branches create the perfect breeding ground for diseases to fester and spread to your tree. In addition to diseases, many different pests will feast on the decaying materials from damaged tree branches. You’ll notice the majority of damaged or diseased branches are lower hanging branches from receiving inadequate sunlight and air flow. Be sure to prune low branches regularly, ensuring that any branches that show signs of damage, disease, or pest infestations are removed promptly to help ensure the rest of the tree remains healthy.
Promotes Stronger Trees
If you want your tree to be strong and sturdy, then regularly pruning low branches is a great place to start. Diverting your trees energy into high branches is a great way to promote healthy and strong tree growth, contributing to a tree that is sure to flourish for years to come. When leaving low branches to grow, they can steal much needed energy from larger branches which can make them more susceptible to damage, diseases and pests.
Whether you’re just learning how to properly care for and maintain our landscaping, or you’re ready to transform your outdoor space, our team is here to help! From installing irrigation systems to ensure you harden received the ample amount of water, to adding seasonal color to help your landscaping ‘pop,’ our team of professional landscapers is here to help make all of your landscaping dreams a reality, contact us today!