Do You Know Anything About Trees ?

[Karen]

If they have many other branches, removing a few lower-hanging ones will not kill the tree. Pick a cooler day and you can do the trim, just make sure to be nice to the tree afterwards, and make sure it gets water and fertilizer to help it "recover" - if you don't want to wait until November to do it, the sooner the better so it has the rest of the growing season to heal and store more energy.

[Bonny]

Seriously, I would not cut anything on those trees till Jan or Feb if they are oak trees. In my area it is early March in zone 4 when can cut back fruit trees, maples, ash, etc. . You will stress them out & set them back if you do it now. Check with your state extension service before you do anything. pretty please.

[Karen]

She never said they were oak trees! And I have cut back branches on several different kinds of trees this time of year to no ill effect. (Ash, maple, oak, etc.) In fact, one oak tree we thought was dead that was much older than the sapling Liz described. It sprang back to life after we chopped off all but 4 1/2 feet of the 3-inch-thick trunk!

We moved into this house in May 13 years ago, so did a lot of pruning, plating etc in June even though it was not recommended. We wanted lawn instead of dirt, and to beat back some of the overgrowth.

[pomtzu]

My father would never prune till Fall, and when he did, he painted the cut with something that resembled tar, but I really have no idea what it was.

Over the years, I have pruned plenty of trees and shrubs in the Spring and early Summer, and never painted the cut with anything. I also never had any problems with the trees when doing it that way.

[kokopup]

In my area it is not necessary to do anything when pruning. It is advisable to paint any injury the tree may receive. An injury like knocking off bark with mowers or other equipment needs to be addressed. In Alabama anyway an injured tree is a candidate for Carpenter Ant invasion. I had a very large Oak that was killed by these ants. It took several years after invasion but they tunneled every branch on a tree that was at least 60 feet tall.

[Bonny]

Lizbud didn't really mention what kind of trees they were that is why I mentioned the oaks & other more sappy trees. Oak trees will drop off dead branches on there own but need pruning during the winter months. The leaves on the trees during the summer are food for the trees. You don't want to take their food away when they need it the most but in the winter when they are dorment you can trim them up. If you trim a maple now sap will run out & stress the tree & attract bugs, fungus, woodpeckers, etc.

Karen the trees you worked on were older trees & Lizbud's trees are just two year old babies.

Planting lawns depends on the grasses you plan to use. When the soil is warm & there are rains go for it. I have planted grass in the fall & have had real good luck because the soil is warm & we have plenty of moisture before Jack Frost & Old Man Winter are knocking at our door.