Knowledgebase
Pruned Crabapple trimming after storm damage #931741
Asked May 14, 2026, 6:22 PM EDT
A tree service pruned our mature crabapple trees after several large branches breaking off. The trees had leafed out and being heavily laden with ice and snow--many branches broke.
Attached you will find pictures regarding straight-up branches that were not cut to the knob of the attached larger branch. Should they have cut these differently"
Douglas County Colorado
Expert Response
Hi Nadia,
I'm sorry to hear about your tree. Ideally, yes, those branches would have been pruned back to a branch union, either with a larger branch or at a smaller branch that is at least 1/3 the diameter of that which is being removed. There is no problem to go back to the tree and "correct" the cuts when you're able.
For an in-depth look at pruning cuts, you might find this CSU resource helpful: https://extension.colostate.edu/resource/pruning-cuts/
Let me know if you have any other questions!
Cordially,
John
Thank you for your response, John:
Since we are approaching summer is it best to go in and cut the "water sprouts", outside the branch collar, NOW? As you saw in the pictures, None of them have any leaf growth along their branches and just look like long, bare STUBS.
Nadia
Hi Nadia,
Yes, you certainly can do it now, and for aesthetics you'll probably want to do it as soon as you can. For tree health, it's not "urgent" per se, so don't feel like you need to drop everything to prune the tree, but try to get it done between now and mid-July if possible.
Good luck!
John
