 My name is Joseph Lesnick. I'm the forestry specialist with NDSU Extension and winter is a great time to prune. In this video, we'll talk about some of the reasons to prune, as well as the ways to prune. The techniques talking about anatomy of the tree, where we prune, but also why, which branches to remove and why. Like this oak tree here, this is where we'll start. Before we start though, I do want to mention the tools we use. Sometimes it's a pole pruner like this, sometimes it's as simple as a hand pruner. The point is use a sharp implement, whether it's a saw or a lopper or a hand pruner and by the best quality you can afford. For where we prune, let's look at tree anatomy for a sec. This is the branch bark ridge. It's where the branch tissue meets the stem tissue. They come in together and they push up to form a ridge. And just to the outside of that is the branch collar. It's a little swollen area here. And where we want to prune is just to the outside of that branch collar. That's where trees prune themselves naturally. And we'll try to avoid nicking that branch bark ridge. And we're going to prune just to the outside of the branch collar, avoiding the branch bark ridge. This is where the tree would prune itself naturally. Easy as that. Again, we want to go just to the outside of the branch collar. That's where trees prune themselves naturally. That's where they allow branches that have been shaded out to die. That's where they go back to. The other part is we don't want to flush cut. We want to avoid that branch bark ridge and avoid harming the stem, if at all possible. When I was growing up, I was taught flush cut. Well, we found out that that isn't quite right. So let's aim for that just to the outside of the branch collar. The tree will heal faster that way. In pruning trees, we want to develop good structure. What does that mean? That means a scaffold of healthy, well-spaced branches. If you look at the big apple tree in the back, the crab apple tree that has wider space branches, they're big, they're healthy. I kind of put it this way. It's like they're the perfect spacing for a kid to climb in it. On a young tree like this one, it's a little hard to develop. It's a little hard to show because we have to envision this tree five, 10, 15, 20 years in the future. A lot of these branches are going to be gone by them. But what we want to do is start developing that structure now by picking which branches we leave and which ones we remove. When we're deciding which branches to remove, we want to think about radial spacing around the tree, north, south, east, and west. Ideally, we'll have branches spaced nice and evenly around the tree. That being said, we have to deal with what Mother Nature gives us. This branch over here is a little bit smaller, and this big one off to the east side is really covering that area pretty well. So we'll remove this one and see where we're at. Maybe. Okay. Getting a little bit better spacing here. How about the west side? This is a little bit bigger branch, but this lower branch, which is even bigger and more dominant, is really covering this area pretty good. So let's remove this branch as well. All right. Let's use the loppers on this one. So a little bit bigger branch, trying to be just to the outside of the collar. We have a little bit bigger spacing here and on this side too. And in the long run, who knows, these might be removed as well. But for now, we've provided a little bit bigger spacing, and this tree will be set up for future pruning in order to develop that good structure. Dead branches can be removed anytime of the year, like on these spruce trees. Dying branches, broken branches, those should be removed in winter when you can get to them. And a pole saw like this is a great tool. I do want to point out that pruning saws generally are curved and they cut on the pole stroke when you're pulling. So if you're pushing and trying to cut, actually it's not going to work so good. On this linden tree, this branch was broken. I'm not sure how. Until we do something about it, that could serve as an infection point for insects and diseases. So what I want to do is take out this stub, and there's no branch collar there, so I'm going to create as small a wound as possible, cutting across, straight across this branch. Well, let's see how I did. I cut straight across this branch, creating as small a wound as possible. I was maybe out a little too far. I maybe could have come down a little more, but that wasn't too bad. There are a few extra strands here. I'm just going to clip those out. There's still a little bit of bark hanging here, and this isn't doing the tree any good. So let's get rid of that too. This green ash tree has some problems. Okay, there's a nice branch bark ridge here. This is a leader. This is a branch, but these two sides here are two different leaders, and there's a split here, and that's a problem, because these two competing leaders are pushing each other apart, and actually on a windy day, you can see that crack opening and closing. This tree is scheduled to be removed this winter. Another reason to prune trees is to provide clearance to raise the crowns, whether that's over a sidewalk, over a fence, like right here, or over a roadway. Generally over sidewalks, the recommendation is eight feet over roadway 16 feet, and quite frankly, if you're cutting the lawn, sometimes you want them over your head. Remember, winter's a great time to prune. Use a sharp tool and go right outside of the branch collar. Have fun!