Pause your winter break because it’s pruning time

I apologize for this column because I’m about to interrupt your well-deserved winter rest. Contrary to what you might think, it’s the perfect time to be thinking about tree care.

Winter is an excellent time to prune trees because they are dormant and unlikely to experience any of the stress that comes with having a limb cut off, which sounds stressful indeed. And there are other advantages as well. Frozen ground makes it easier for arborists to work. Large machinery doesn’t damage soggy lawns, and the ground provides more stable footing.

Gardens also sustain less damage when work above them is done in winter. Tromping through garden beds is almost never a good thing, but there’s far less damage caused when the ground is frozen and perennials are dormant.

Winter also offers an unobstructed view of deciduous trees’ branching, which can help you get a much better feel for the overall structure of tree and where limbs may need be selectively pruned.

This is even more important on smaller trees, since trees still getting established are more suitable for DIY pruning.

Tree pruning is not necessarily simple business — there’s a reason good arborists are worth their weight in gold — but there are a few general rules that usually apply.

You shouldn’t do much, if any, pruning until a tree has had two to five years in the ground to get its roots established. After that, you can prune for long-term health and aesthetics.

Lower branches can be removed to raise the canopy if necessary. Side branches (also called scaffold branches) can be selectively pruned to make sure they are evenly distributed around the trunk, about 12 to 18 inches apart, and have wide crotch angles. Narrow crotch angles create weak points that are almost always problematic down the road.

Crossing branches that can rub on each other and watersprouts ­— thin sprouts that shoot straight up often in clusters — should also be pruned out. Double leaders should also be corrected by choosing the more desirable leader and pruning out the other.

A good rule of thumb is to not prune out more than one-quarter to a third of a tree’s canopy at one time, and never top a tree by cutting off the main leader (with a few rare exceptions for specialized pruning applications).

There’s one type of pruning that is difficult to do in winter, and that might be for the better. It can be difficult to identify dead branches, but dead branches are not as bad as you’ve been led to believe, at least when they’re on trees where there’s no risk of them falling on structures, people or cars.

Dead branches provide habitat and food for many species, and bird lovers in particular should be eager to keep a few around where it is safe to.

So bundle up and check out your trees. They’ll appreciate your attention now, and let’s be honest, you don’t have a lot of excuses for not checking off some yard work, other than the risk of frostbite.

Erin Schanen lives and gardens in the Town of Belgium. She is the author of the blog The Impatient Gardener.