Now that it’s August, I wanted to remind everyone that the wildlife babies have grown and fledged, making this the safest time to prune. 

Every spring, many baby animals are hurt or killed because their nests are damaged during routine tree pruning or removal. I don’t think most people mean to injure wild creatures. They simply don’t think about it at all. The good news is that it’s so easy to prevent – just wait until August or later to trim your trees, to be sure all the creatures are gone. Often the delay may be as little as a couple of weeks.

If you have to trim a tree in the spring, at the very least do a check to see if there are any wild creatures already living there (look both of branches AND in cavities) before making any cuts.

For more information about what you need to know about working with trees and wildlife, click here.

Image: wiccked