How to Prune a Texas Mountain Cedar Tree

Locate the dead zone on your Texas mountain cedar tree. The dead zone is the interior area where the branches don't receive enough sunlight to produce new bud growth.

Avoid pruning into this dead zone. Because no new shoots develop in this inactive area, any pruned stubs will remain visible and make your tree look unattractive and deformed.

Prune your Texas mountain cedar tree in the early spring before the new buds appear. Pruning your tree at this time allows the new growth to cover any unsightly pruning wounds.

Perform maintenance pruning in the early summer. According to the Virginia Cooperative Extension, just prune your tree lightly at this time to keep it within your preferred size range.

Prune out and destroy any diseased branches as soon as possible. Texas mountain cedar often suffers from common juniper diseases, particularly Phomopis tip blight and Kabatina tip blight. Cut the affected wood with a sterilized pruning saw a minimum of 4 inches beneath the diseased area.

Cut out any dead, weakened or broken branches. Keep your cuts as flush with the bark as you possible can. Have the smallest cut surface possible so your tree heals faster.

Thin out crowded branches until just the strongest branch remains. Cut out any limbs that cross or rub against another branch to avoid future wood injuries.

Keep the base area of your Texas mountain cedar tree wider than the top area. A wider top portion causes too much self-shading, which might stunt the growth of the lower branches and make the base area look too thin.