Before You Hang a Single Christmas Tree Ornament, Read This – An Expert Warns There’s One Crucial Step You’re Probably Skipping

Now that December has arrived, many of us are adorning our interiors with festive decor, including the holiday centerpiece, the Christmas tree. In the excitement of picking out the perfect tree and getting your ornaments up, there's one task an expert says you're forgetting to do: pruning.

It's a key task in Christmas tree care that often gets overlooked, but it's understandable why. Christmas trees don't always need pruning, but it's a task that can help keep your tree looking fresh through the whole holiday season. It's especially important for trees that may have experienced damage in transit, or weren't in the best condition to begin with.

Luckily, it's super simple to prune a Christmas tree, both to shape it to your desired look and to keep it in healthy condition. Here's what an expert wants you to know.

How to Prune a Christmas Tree

One of the biggest real Christmas tree mistakes is not caring for it as a live plant, as you would with other indoor plants.

This includes making sure to prune your Christmas tree, but only doing so if necessary. Over-pruning will leave your tree looking bare and can hinder its health going forward.

Horticulture expert Michael Clarke says to start by removing damaged and dead foliage, as well as any broken branches.

'This improves the tree’s appearance, prevents pests and disease, and if it's a potted tree with roots, it helps the tree direct energy into new growth,' he explains.

Michael notes that even if your have a potted Christmas tree you can prune damaged branches 'at any time of year.'

Use essential pruning tools to do this, like these bypass pruning shears from Amazon. You may also want to wear gardening gloves with long sleeves (from Amazon) to protect your skin, and consider doing this outdoors to prevent mess in your living room.

With damaged and dead plant matter removed, you can turn your attention to shaping your tree.

This may not be necessary if you picked your tree up from a supplier that has already pruned it to shape. But, if there are any wayward stems or the tree isn't as shapely as you would like, you can do some trimming to improve it.

For cut Christmas trees, you can be a bit more liberal, keeping in mind a clean, symmetrical shape.

'Shorten or remove irregular side branches, by trimming back branches that are sticking out too far on one side and very upward or downward angled branches that interrupt the classic cone shape,' Michael suggests.

The main upright stem is the 'leader' and, as Michael notes, you should remove any other vertical facing stems that are attempting to compete. This will give you a neat silhouette.

For a potted Christmas tree, you need to keep in mind it is still living and will continue growing. This is where tree pruning mistakes could harm its health.

'Prune a bit more selectively to shape it and always cut just above a bud or side shoot to encourage new growth,' Michael advises.

Make sure to not cut back too far into old, bare wood, as evergreen trees (like conifers and pine) only set buds for new growth on new wood.

The aim is to cut branches at the top of the tree shorter than those at the bottom to create the cone shape. Stepping back between cuts can help you see how it's progressing.

You should also do a bit of research around the specific pruning needs for the variety of Christmas tree you have, especially if you plant to grow it in your yard after the holidays.

For the most part, it's best to prune evergreen trees in early spring ahead of active growth.

Michael Clarke

Michael Clarke is the founder of Yardwork and Pulled, the online platforms for everything home and garden. He has a degree in landscape architecture and horticulture from the University of California Davis. He was previously the founder of a landscape development and maintenance company.

FAQs

Can I Prune My Christmas Tree to Make it Shorter?

Yes, you can prune your Christmas tree to make it shorter, if it doesn't quite fit in your space. The best way to do this is actually pruning at the bottom, shortening the trunk. You can also trim branches to make it slimmer, but make sure to maintain the Christmas tree cone shape when doing this.

With your Christmas tree pruned, watered, and ready for decorating, you can start bringing your dream holiday tree to life. Explore our expert guide to the most beautiful, stylish Christmas tree ideas of the year for inspiration.

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