Many property owners tend to pay less attention to their commercial landscapes during the winter months. Aside from snow removal, they may not think maintenance is essential when the temperatures are cold, and the growth has stopped. On the contrary, winter is actually a great time to prune your trees and shrubs.
Encouraging New Growth
Flowering shrubs such as forsythia, lilac, viburnum, and others produce more flowers when the wood is young. As these shrubs age, the wood will stop producing as many flowers, and the branches will get thicker and harder to prune. Pruning during the dormant season by removing up to one-third of the oldest and largest stems (canes) will make room for new, more vigorous growth leading to more flowering in the Spring. Essentially, this helps rejuvenate the plant annually, which extends the amount of time you can enjoy it as part of the landscape.
Avoiding Disruption
Removing trees and shrubs from your landscape can often disrupt the soil and the surrounding shrubbery. By scheduling this work during the winter when the ground is harder, the chance of turf damage or causing injury to surrounding plant material is reduced. If the removal of a tree, or the pruning of a shrub, does happen to cause damage to a neighboring plant, corrective pruning to repair the damaged roots or above-ground portions and improves the chance of the damaged plant’s recovery.
Avoiding Insect Infestations
Some trees and shrubs are more susceptible to disease & insect damage than others, but many of those insects & spreading diseases slow or completely stop in the Winter. If you take care of pruning during the dormant season, you greatly reduce the amount of pheromone the tree may put out attracting certain insects that could carry diseases or fungi and you’re allowing the pruning cuts to dry out a bit before the pruning wound begins to develop new tissue. Certain diseases can spread during the growing season on flowering & fruiting trees as well, so you run the risk of fireblight, a contagious disease-causing bacterium, or other tree bacterium or nectria canker.
And don’t forget, all trees & shrubs need supplemental watering during Colorado’s dry Winters, at least once a month, from November to April.
Getting the Process Started
Denver Commercial Property Services is committed to ensuring your landscape is beautiful at all times of the year. Invest in winter pruning for your commercial landscape by calling 720-770-TREE.
