Now that deciduous foliage has fallen, the canopies of trees and shrubs are opened up. An ideal time to prune. During the dry summer we had this year, overhanging growth that was acceptable to brush past on pathways now holds water and in passing results in clothes absorbing this rainwater.

Make clean cuts to shoot/branch junctions using sharp pruning implements. Do not leave coat hangers. These stubs of branches not only look unsightly but can result die back and subsequent infection in healthy wood. Examples of these can be seen in the attached images.

Coat hangers

Overhang

Poor pruning cut