Pluggers by Rick McKee for November 26, 2014

He can always just grab that saw on a post.

Mother nature prunes my cottonwoods with pests. Dead branches periodically fall in the yard.

6 years ago the wind “pruned” an entire tree in my back yard. It fell away from the house, thankfully, but took out the second tree which fell across the electric lines to the house. Ripped the wires out of the transformer on the pole in the alley, causing the entire block to be without power for a couple of hours. Tore the electric wires off the house causing a couple thousand dollars of damage. The third and last tree was cut down later that month.

Pecans prune themselves every spring. It gives you a chance to pick up all the shed branches just before the pollen starts blowing.

Last year, during our 24" snowfall winter (that’s a lot where I live), I looked out the back window and thought, that’s just great; someone threw their Christmas tree out in our back yard. When the snow melted and I could walk back there, I realized what I thought was a Christmas tree was a large branch from the backyard pine that broke off during the snow, ice, and wind. And the backyard is accumulating debris from the last few windstorms even as I speak. I just don’t have a vehicle I can use to haul it all to the stump dump.

If you have sycamores you know they are self-pruning. After a good wind we have medium sized branches in the front yard from the neighbours’ trees.

Good in theory, but doesn’t always happen.

Funny, but if you want the strongest winds, you need to go to Washington DC when Congress is in session!.Well, if you want hot air anyway…

The “pruned” the neighbors tree in his backyard a couple of years ago. Right on top of my wife’s van. Not good at all.

Unfortunately, I been there -- twice!