As winter drags on, there's a good chance your yard is the last thing on your mind. Landscaping and yard care often feel like jobs for the warmer spring and summer months, but the steps you take during the winter can be crucial to the success and beauty of your yard. Tree trimming is one particularly crucial task over these chilly and snowy months. 

While it's never too late to manage your trees, here are three good reasons to take care of this critical yard maintenance job before the winter ends.

1. You'll Save the Tree's Energy

All plants require energy not only to grow but to remain healthy and stave off diseases, pests, and other threats. The larger a tree, the more energy it needs to devote to maintaining its existing growth. When a tree has old, diseased, or unnecessary growth, it must expend extra energy maintaining these unneeded or even harmful limbs.

Since trees are typically dormant during the winter, it's the perfect time to remove this unnecessary growth. Trimming during this period will cause the smallest amount of stress to the tree and remove this old growth before the growing season starts. As a result, your tree will have more energy to put toward newer, healthier growth.

2. You'll Beat the Pests

Many pests and diseases are opportunistic. If you've ever maintained a garden, you know that the weakest plants suffer the most from infestations and infections. Trees are no different. When a tree has old or weak growth, it will inevitably become a target for problems that can seriously harm its health or even kill it.

However, most of these diseases and pests are active in the warmer parts of the year. Trimming your trees in the winter will beat these pests to the punch. Instead of leaving vulnerable trees for them to infest, you'll ensure your trees remain as healthy as possible, making them more likely to resist these problems before they start.

3. You'll Prevent Dangerous Accidents

While a tree can break or fall at any time, risks are often greatest during the summer. Severe storms, heavy winds, and even hail can cause trees to fall or limbs to break. For large trees, these accidents can be extremely dangerous and lead to property damage, injuries, or even deaths. Trimming your trees in the winter can remove the most at-risk limbs before these accidents occur.

Although it may be surprising, winter is often the best time to trim your trees. Performing your tree maintenance during these cold months comes with many benefits and will give you a great headstart on your spring and summer yard work.

Contact a local tree trimming service to learn more.