Proper Pruning Techniques

I volunteer once a week as a tree pruner at the Desert Botanical Garden here in Phoenix, home of extremely civilized people.  I qualified for this position after graduating from their Desert Landscaper School and proving myself on the trees in the parking lot.  They don't let just anyone prune the trees in the garden, so, in the words of Donald Trump, I am VERY proud of myself.

The first thing I do when I approach a tree that is recommended for pruning is listen to it.  Does it need to be pruned?  Does it want to be pruned?  Is it a little bit nervous about the whole thing?  Usually when I look into a tree I can see a lot of dead wood that can be removed.  This alone may be all that it needs.  Pruning the dead wood - nice metaphor, eh?

Recently I've noticed that if I go in for my tree pruning session after a particularly difficult phone conversation with the man formerly known as my husband (loved him dearly, always will) I can become a little too aggressive with the trees.  Like, I want to chop them down to the ground and hack them into little pieces.  I warned my pruning partner, Larry, about this.  I sort of require a de-briefing before I begin so I don't do any damage.  Larry is 75 going on 25, wears a smart green helmet, and he keeps the tools sparkling clean.  He almost always indulges my desire to have the final cut.  I think he totally gets it.

By the way, Larry, if you are reading this, I still owe you six dollars.

Desert Botanical Garden


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