Tree trimming and pruning are necessary to keep trees healthy. However, inexperience can lead to over-pruning. It is one of the worst mistakes you can make when taking care of trees, but unfortunately, it happens often. Below, the team at Eldridge Arborist & Landscaping, Oak Ridge, NC’s premier arborists, explains the importance of proper tree maintenance and why over-pruning leads to irreparable damage.

Why Is Tree Trimming & Pruning Necessary?

Tree trimming and pruning offer several benefits for your landscape. By removing dead or dying branches from the tree, you can improve the appearance and shape of the plant. It also keeps the tree healthy by ridding it of diseased branches or limbs that could ultimately destroy it. Pruning also keeps people and your property safe; broken limbs can fall and lead to significant damage to homes or personal injury. Removing them before they break prevents the tree from becoming a safety hazard.

How Does Over-Pruning Damage Trees?

Though pruning is essential to the maintenance of a tree, it can be overdone. According to the Tree Care Industry Association, it is best not remove more than 25% of a tree’s foliage in a year. Taking too much in a short time is an easy mistake to make. Over-pruning can lead to problems, such as reduced food production, decay from cuts in the wrong places, increased risk of wind damage, less strength, and more limb breakage.

Excessive pruning and tree trimming are detrimental to the health and structural integrity of the plant. It leaves it vulnerable to disease and damage from exposure to the elements. 

Keep your trees strong, healthy, and beautiful by contacting the professionals at Eldridge Arborist & Landscaping. Their specialists are fully bonded and licensed to keep your trees in excellent condition all year long. Whether you need tree trimming, stump removal, or 24-hour emergency service, they will get the job done efficiently. Call (336) 423-7133 to schedule a free estimate or visit their website to learn more about their available services.