Pruning Trees in the Winter

I'm often asked why I am so emphatic about pruning trees in the winter - here is the short list :)

• Limbs are autonomous, the trunk only recognizes the limb when it is supplying sugars, if we take the limb when the tree is dormant, the tree will revert energy into the existing limbs better in the spring so we have far less stress on dormant trees.
• It is easier to view the overall canopy and make decisions on dominant leader corrective pruning
• There are no insects to take advantage of fresh wounds and open cuts.
• Flowers, shrubs and other plants are less likely to be damaged from falling limbs, ladders etc because they are dormant too.
• If we prune too soon in the Fall and we get a warm spell, the fresh cuts will stimulate new growth where we've pruned - then we get a cold snap and the new growth is damaged for next year. So the later the better especially on younger trees; November on is usually pretty safe.

So why don't commercial companies prune in the winter?...well, it's flipping cold out there and most workers don't want to work in those conditions - but  it's best for the trees and that makes it worth it to me.

Good link to why we prune in winter

Link to University info on why we prune in winter
DO NOT PRUNE IN THE FALL BEFORE TREES ARE DORMANT