Are you concerned about your safety fearing your tree may drop a limb at any time? Do you have branches that hang over your house filling your gutters with debris?
Low branches that obstruct the footpath, driveway or garden path? Are branches rubbing on your electricity or phone wires? Is your tree going to outgrow its available space?
There are many reasons to prune a tree, and many many different ways of pruning a tree. Some are highly beneficial, others can be completely detrimental. It is important you get the right advice from professional Arborists, ones that care about what they do, take pride in their work and most of all, do so with integrity. Someone who puts YOU and your trees needs ahead of feeding their woodchipper and keeping a crew busy!
Tree pruning is rarley performed for "tree health" reasons, what is done above ground is negligible in that respect. Quality tree pruning is more so a solution to YOUR needs than the trees own. The best results will come from your Arborist having the best understanding of your concerns. From there, we use our expertise and knowledge of the science of Arboriculture to provide you with the best solution that offers long term value. All our pruning is performed to Australian Standards 4373:2007. We have NO interest in performing "malpractice" tree cutting such as Lopping or Topping etc. This is a short-sighted approach, performed for the ill-informed public by uneducated "tree loppers" and is not the work of professional Arborists. To learn more about the difference between Tree Lopping and Tree Pruning, and the difference between Tree Loppers and Arborists, visit our information page on this here...
Types of Pruning
Crown Lifting: To raise the lower canopy by removing some of the lowest branches. Usually to give more physical clearance over footpaths, driveways or lawns and can also be done to offer more light penetration to a garden below.
Crown Thinning: To reduce canopy density by selectively removing secondary branches throughout the interior of the crown. Usally done to offer more light penetration to a garden below or enhance the appearance of an otherwise overly dense, unruly tree. Care must be taken not to over-thin or encourage "lions-tails" where only tufts of foliage remain towards the branch tips.
Crown Reduction: To reduce the height, spread and volume of a canopy all over by shortening branches and leaders back to suitable smaller interior branches. Usually to manage the overall size of a tree crown, manage the weight and reduce leverage on branches and leading stems with the purpose of improving on the trees structure and form it has naturally developed. A trees primary function is to develop into the most ideal form for efficient photosynthesis. As a result, stand-alone trees (compared to forest trees) will often develop over-extended, end-heavy branches, great for farming sunlight, but a poor architecture for optimal, sound structure. We can "re-design" the trees form to create a safer tree with a lower risk of failure while maintaining a natural appearance.
Weight Reduction: To reduce the length of over-extended, end-heavy lateral branches throughout the canopy. This is done for the same reasons as Crown Reduction above, but is limited to just the more lateral branches and does not include reduction of the height of leading stems in the upper canopy. This is our primary pruning method to improve safety and reduce risk of failing branches in trees.
Selective Pruning: To remove certain identified branches for a specific reason. This is more often to make a tree fit with the clients needs than it is for an improvement in the trees own structure or health.
Clearance Pruning: To reduce or remove branches as required to provide physical clearance of a certain target. Usually to maintain distance from utility service wires, gutters or of trees over boundaries of neighbouring properties.
Formative Pruning: To reduce or remove branches as required to correct or prevent structural defects and encourage good form. Often done on juvenile trees to prevent many of the above pruning requirements in later years.
Remedial Pruning: To reduce or remove branches as required to correct structural defects and restore a foundation for future growth. Usually done on mature trees to repair damage after major failures from storm events, other mechanical damage or previous poor "pruning" practices.
Crown Cleaning: To remove dead branches and stubs from previous failures or poor "pruning" throughout the canopy. This type of pruning is often combined with any of the above pruning types, however some trees require only this.
