Good tree pruning is a craft. The right cuts in the right places keep a tree strong, safe and healthy for decades; the wrong ones leave rot, weak regrowth and a tree that becomes dangerous. A skilled pruner removes dead, diseased and crossing branches, thins rather than tops, and cuts at the branch collar. Describe your trees and what worries you, and local arborists, tree fellers and garden services can quote. One free, no-obligation request brings back quotes to compare.
The cuts that matter
Every branch joins the trunk at a slightly swollen ring called the branch collar. A good pruner cuts just outside it, so the tree can seal the wound. Cutting flush with the trunk opens a large wound; leaving a long stub gives rot a way in. Heavy branches are cut in three steps: an undercut, a top cut further out to drop the weight, then the final cut at the collar, so the bark does not tear down the trunk.
Thinning and deadwooding, not topping
A good pruning plan usually goes in this order:
- Deadwood out first: dead branches fall in storms.
- Diseased and damaged branches next.
- Crossing and rubbing branches, keeping the better one.
- Light thinning to let wind and light through the crown.
Most pruners seldom remove more than about a quarter of a healthy crown at once. Topping, cutting the whole crown back to stubs, weakens the tree and leads to a mass of weakly attached shoots that break later. If someone offers to top your tree, get another quote.
When to prune
Late winter, while deciduous trees are bare and before the spring flush, suits most of them: you can see the structure and the wounds start closing as growth begins. Dead and dangerous branches can come off at any time. Spring flowering trees are often pruned soon after they flower. Avoid big cuts in a drought or a heat wave. In the winter rainfall Cape, many pruners prefer dry spells so fungal spores have less chance.
Fruit trees and young trees
Fruit trees are pruned to open the centre, keep the fruit within reach and encourage fruiting wood: peaches and nectarines on last year's growth, apples and pears on spurs. Citrus needs only light shaping and deadwooding. Young trees respond best to early training: one main leader, well spaced branches and no tight forks. A few cuts on a young tree save a lot of work, and an arborist, later. For clearance from roofs and drives, see tree trimming.
What to include in your request
- Species and rough height of each tree
- What worries you: deadwood, splits, crossing
- Photos of the whole crown and problem limbs
- Fruit trees: what they are and how old
- Whether branches are removed or chipped
Tree Pruning for different clients
- Homeowners: deadwooding old shade trees and pruning fruit trees so they stay safe and productive
- Estates, complexes and body corporates: keeping old trees in common areas healthy with a planned pruning cycle
- Farms, smallholdings and plantations: orchard pruning and deadwooding old windbreak trees near sheds and houses
- Businesses and commercial property: keeping hotel, lodge and office trees safe over guests, staff and parked cars
- Schools, churches and municipalities: deadwooding and thinning old trees in parks, school grounds and cemeteries
- Developers and building sites: pruning trees kept on a site so they survive the building work
- Servitudes and fire breaks: planned pruning along servitudes by authorised teams, away from live lines
- Tree fellers, landscapers and garden services: garden services and landscapers adding skilled pruning for clients' trees
Frequently asked questions
How much does tree pruning cost?
Is topping a tree ever a good idea?
Should pruning cuts be painted or sealed?
How do I find tree pruning services near me?
Tree Pruning by province and city
- Johannesburg
- Pretoria
- Centurion
- Midrand
- Sandton
- Randburg
- Roodepoort
- Krugersdorp
- Randfontein
- Germiston
- Boksburg
- Benoni
- Kempton Park
- Alberton
- Vanderbijlpark
- Vereeniging
- Durban
- Pinetown
- Pietermaritzburg
- Richards Bay
- Newcastle
- Ladysmith
- Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth)
- East London
- Kariega (Uitenhage)
- Mthatha
- Cape Town
- Bellville
- Paarl
- Stellenbosch
- George
- Worcester
- eMalahleni (Witbank)
- Middelburg
- Secunda
- Mbombela (Nelspruit)
- Rustenburg
- Brits
- Klerksdorp
- Potchefstroom
- Mahikeng
- Polokwane
- Tzaneen
- Kimberley
- Upington
- Bloemfontein
- Welkom
- Sasolburg