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Tree Pruning Calendar for Camino
Pruning isn't one job. It's a handful of jobs that each have a month. Here's the whole year, laid out for a yard on the hill. When you're ready for help, call (530) 248-6054.
Camino's mean elevation is about 3,133 feet, so winters are real and snow comes several times a year. Use this as a guide, and let a pro read your own trees.
Winter
December, January, February
December
Leaves are down. Mistletoe stands out on the bare oaks, because UC's notes say it keeps its green foliage and shows up in winter. Make a list of the clumps. Mistletoe berries are around from October to December, so now is when birds spread it.
January
This is dormant pruning month for apples and pears. UC splits fruit tree pruning into a winter season and a summer season, and winter does the shaping. Begin with dead, sick and criss-crossed wood. Water sprouts follow, then any crowded spots.
Deciduous oaks, like black oaks, are also a winter job. The UC oak sheet says to prune those in winter.
February
Wrap up the fruit trees before buds swell. The International Society of Arboriculture finds that cuts close best before the spring growth flush. Also, the pine window closes now, because UC bars pine pruning from February to mid-October.
Spring
March, April, May
March
Walk the yard after the last storm. Look for broken limbs from winter. ISA allows dead, weak or sick limbs to be removed in any month, so storm damage can be dealt with now. Leave pines for later unless a limb is dangerous.
April
Fire blight watch begins. UC says pears, Asian pears and some apples are the most at risk. It likes warm days of 75 to 85 degrees with rain or hail. If you find an infection, UC says fast-moving ones on these trees are cut out as soon as they appear in spring.
Skip the heavy pruning and fertilizer. UC says both push the soft growth that fire blight loves.
May
Mostly a hands-off month. ISA says heavy pruning of live tissue just after the spring growth flush should be avoided. The tree just spent a lot of energy on new leaves.
Summer
June, July, August
June
Time for a light summer trim on fruit trees. UC says summer pruning controls growth. Take it easy and don't remove too much at once.
July
Apricots and cherries get their turn now. UC confines them to July and August inland. Eutypa spores fly in rain from fall through spring, so a summer cut has time to seal.
Evergreen oaks, such as interior live oaks, are a summer job too, says the UC oak sheet.
August
Mind summer branch drop. It tends to come on hot, still days, and UC says the limbs that fail are often level ones reaching 3-12 feet out. Check what hangs over the roof and drive before the heat peaks.
Fall
September, October, November
September
Let pruning slow down. Illinois Extension says to avoid late-summer pruning that stimulates new, tender growth. Camino is a fall apple-picking spot, and the trees have enough to do this month.
October
Mid-month, pines come back onto the list. UC's no-prune window ends in mid-October. Berries show up on mistletoe, too, so look up in the oaks.
November
Time for the pre-snow walk. Hunt for narrow V-shaped forks, which Illinois Extension wants taken out. Check long limbs above the roof, the drive, and the wires to your house. Anything close to a line goes to a pro, since PG&E asks for 10 feet of clearance.
Every few years
How often?
LawnStarter says most mature trees need trimming every three to five years. Young trees need it every two to three years. Fruit trees should be trimmed every year. Evergreens can often go years without a trim.
Your trees may be different. A pro can set a plan after one visit.
Next
Jobs and prices
Each job has its own page with real prices: orchard pruning, winter dormant pruning, snow-load pruning, limbs over the roof, near power lines, and mistletoe and bark beetles. Back to Camino.