Maintaining beautiful, shade-casting, property-enhancing trees while also allowing for sightlines is a goal of many homeowners in metro Atlanta. The reality is that achieving such a goal requires judicious, responsible pruning: the shaping of a tree’s crown that fulfills aesthetic needs without injuring the tree itself.
This kind of pruning is often called “vista pruning,” given a primary aim is creating or preserving views from the home or from the property in general. In addition, it’s something we offer here at Excel Tree Care: We provide the professional arboriculture and sensitive workmanship required to properly carry out this kind of project. When done correctly – and that’s the only way we’ll do it – vista pruning satisfies homeowner needs while boosting the health and vitality of the tree in question.
Crowd Thinning & Crown Reduction
Depending on the size, age, and condition of a tree, different vista-pruning approaches may be required. Crown thinning is one such approach. This involves trimming or cutting back dead or overgrown branches or twigs within the canopy to open up gaps while protecting the physiological and structural integrity of the tree.
Besides providing sightlines, crowd thinning also funnels sunlight to shaded-out portions of the tree canopy, which can make for an all-around more vigorous tree.
This kind of vista pruning certainly doesn’t need to mean drastic thinning. Pinpointed cutting or trimming can provide portals to desired scenery, perfectly framing views, while also maintaining your privacy.
Structural pruning, aka crown reduction, can also be used to make or maintain views. For example, the height of a tree canopy can be brought down, or its spread contracted, to provide farther-reaching sightlines. This is also employed to better “fit” a tree into its environmental context, as when it’s potentially shading out garden beds or crowding other trees or shrubs.
Uses & Caveats of Vista Pruning
Vista pruning appeals to a wide variety of property owners. It’s popular, for example, among those who live along lakefronts, or those in an enviable setting to have sightlines out to hills or mountains. But even those who don’t have especially dramatic natural features as a backdrop may wish to prune trees for views: A correctly shaped tree canopy might handsomely frame a boulevard, say, or the historic home across the way.
Pruning done wrong, however, can have disastrous consequences. Lopping off poorly selected branches or even secondary twigs can invite disease or otherwise compromise a tree. Generally, the most effective and tree-friendly pruning is done when “problematic” branches are small, though professionals—such as the team here at Excel Tree Care—can often effectively remove bigger boughs on older trees with careful consideration.
Learn more about our vista pruning and other residential services, and don’t hesitate to get in touch with us for any and all Greater Atlanta arborist needs at (404) 964-6508!