Tree Trimming & Pruning in Cincinnati, OH

Tree trimming and pruning is the work that keeps a tree you want to keep. Done well, it takes out dead and broken wood, lightens long limbs that hang over a roof or driveway, and fixes weak forks while they are still small. Done badly, with stubs, flush cuts or a crown cut back to the same height all around (topping), it leaves a tree that sprouts thickets of weak shoots and decays from the inside. Our pruning follows ANSI A300, the national standard for tree care, which is the same standard Cincinnati Parks requires for any work on a public tree.

What we usually cut

• Dead, broken and hanging limbs, which are the most common cause of storm damage to roofs.
• Branches rubbing on shingles, gutters or siding.
• Low limbs over sidewalks, driveways and the street, raised for clearance.
• Crossing and rubbing branches inside the crown.
• End weight on long horizontal limbs, especially on silver maple, pin oak and sweetgum.
• Codominant stems with tight V-shaped unions, reduced early so one side does not split away.

How much is too much

A mature tree depends on its leaves for food. Taking off a large share of the live crown at one time stresses it and invites decay. That is why we often stage work on big trees over two or three seasons rather than doing it all at once, and why we will not top a tree even if asked. When a tree is simply too big for its space, removal and replanting is usually the more honest option.

Timing in southwest Ohio

Late fall through winter is a good window for most species here: the tree is dormant, its structure is easy to see, and fewer insects are active. Dead wood can come out any time. Maples and birches may bleed sap when cut in late winter, which looks alarming but does not harm the tree. Before the summer storm season, we focus on trees that hang over the house.

Trees we leave to others

We will not prune near primary power lines; Duke Energy's line-clearance contractors handle those. For the service line to your house, Duke will de-energize it at no charge while we work nearby. In the City of Cincinnati, pruning a tree in the public right-of-way requires a Public Tree Work Permit, and the city already prunes street trees on a six-year cycle, so a 311 request is usually the first step for those.