You should wait until early spring, before the tree leafs out, to do any pruning. Many people choose limb up their young trees so that people (& lawn movers, cars, etc) can pass beneath the canopy. If you're going to do that, I wouldn't do any more than a couple of those branches this late winter/early spring and then a couple more next year, so as not to put undo stress on the tree. If you want to trip back the one branch that extends a bit beyond the others, again, I'd wait until early spring.

I wouldn't cut off the 4 limbs in question. I don't know what zone you are in, but it's not generally a good idea to prune a tree much going into winter. If it was my tree, I would wait until leaf drop and study the tree again, like you did in your photos. Seeing the skeleton of the tree without the leaves will give you a better look at the shape of the branches. Look for other problem spots, like tight v crotch angles or crossing branches. Tie a piece of string or gardener's tape at the spots you want to trim. Then post more photos to get input on your choices. I would cut that lowest branch back to just beyond the branch above it. But I would wait till late winter, early spring to do it. I know you'll get more input. Good luck!

first.. while you drive around town.. just look at other trees ....

you will note.. that not many are left with branches starting at 5 feet ...

personally.. with a riding lawn mower.. no tree is left less than 3 feet above my head.. i like my eyes.. and no darn tree is going to threaten them ...

maple tend to weep sap a lot in spring .. i would not cut them in spring.. some trees more than others ....

i also tend to cut trees.. when i walk by with the pruning saw ... and they irritate me ....

i have already pruned about 20 of my tree in the last few weeks in my z5 .... though there may be professionals and professors who will argue forever about a proper time... i doubt it really makes much of a difference to us ....

if you have a farm of 10,000 maples... subject to disease and bugs.. and your livelihood depended on it.. THERE IS A PROPER TIME ... but one tree in the middle of the lawn .. go for it ...

while driving around.. start forming an opinion of what the ultimate height you are looking for ... maybe 8 feet.. 10.. 15... i mean for the bottom of the canopy .... once you make that decision.. then you start removing branches until you achieve that ... but not necessarily all at once ... you can always cut them next year.. you cant glue them back on ... it is easier to remove branches in the 1 to 2 inch range.. rather than put it off until the are 4 to 6 inches ... so dont delay too long ..

DO YOU KNOW HOW TO PROPERLY SEVER A BRANCH??? if not, ask ....

what the facts do NOT tell us... is how big the tree was at planting 1.5 years ago ... and how much it grew this summer ... what i want to know.. is how close to being 'established' it is ...

more leaves... means more food production.. means more root growth.. means faster establishment ... so it is usually recommended not to go cutting off to many branches at once ..

all that said.. being a maple ....i doubt you could kill the thing ....

if it were me.. i would remove the bottom 4 branches.. and maybe even the 2 above ...

it looks very happy.. and like it gave vigorous growth this summer.... it most likely is fully 'established' ...

while i was there.. i would also prune out some of the smaller 6 to 12 inchers on the trunk... and any damaged or crossing branches ... opening up the interior of the canopy is a good thing to do ....

ITS A MAPLE .... you could.. most likely... cut it off at the ground.. and it will grow back to the same size in a year or two ... just put aside any fear you may have of 'hurting' it.. by giving it a PROPER haircut ... well pruned and managed trees are much better off than those left to their own whims.. in suburbia ...

what is that grey plastic thing around it??? if it were me.. i would make a 5 to 6 foot circle and PROPERLY fill it with mulch.. a more natural look to my eye ...

i hope the power lines are an optical illusion in the photos ...

i dont know where you are.. but some of the warmer zone peeps say to do this in winter... which is problematic for me with ladders and pole pruners on snow covered ground ... and howling winter winds ...

let us know if you need help with HOW TO PRUNE ... but just get it done ... its a tree.. not a shrub.. so go make it look like one .... now carpe sawum ...

to sum it up.. if you were to call certified arborist [which you do not need] ... they would come and do the job at any time of the year.. that their schedule allowed ... they most likely would NOT put you off until the next proper pruning time ...

ken

PS: i just got a nice tree pruning saw at the hardware.. for under $10 ... it would cut thru those branches with maybe 3 swipes.. please use the right tool ... link below to what you might be looking for.. but apparently price is variable ...

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link

Geez Ken- you had me until the Certified Arborist crack. Being such, I most certainly would not prune it at an improper time. Two times not to prune: 1) Spring as leaves are developing (winter starch reserves are being used as energy to power their development). 2) Fall as leaves are coloring and preparing to fall (starch is being allocated to the bases of buds). Otherwise, prune judiciously.

Thanks for all the info. Waiting until the leaves are gone to get a look at the "skeleton" -- that sounds like a good idea. Although I shouldn't need a saw anytime soon. I've got some heavy-duty loppers.

FYI -- the tree is nowhere near the power lines. 20-30 feet at least.

Also -- the brown plastic thingy is a TreeGator.

Here is a link that might be useful: TreeGator

For some trees it makes a huge difference (in regards of limiting your odds of fungal and pest invasion). For example birches and oaks.

With maples...doesn't matter. I tend to favor late winter.

Personally I wouldn't prune any of those branches. I would make a subordinating cut on that odd branch. All those branches have perfect crotch angles and will help develop the trunk.

Once the branches become a nusiance for clearance...thats when I would prune them.

i tend to like the saw rather than squishing the heck out of the branch at the trunk with lopers .... regardless... either will work as long as the branch is within the capacity of the lopers ... unfortunately.. too often we try to take too big a branch with too small a tool ...

whaas .. i tend to.. if possible.. remove smaller branches that heal quickly... instead of delaying 3 to 5 years.. and then having to take off a 2 or 3 incher ... regardless.. again.. either way is fine ...

whiz .... you know as well as i do.. tree trimmers come do the job when you ask them.. or when the schedule allows... they never say no ... again .. regardless ... its a maple ...

most likely.. based on its vigor.. its time to be rid of the tree gator .... at least by late spring ... especially if your lawn gets watered.. and that looks like one fine lawn ...

and NEVER feed that tree ... it will get all it need if you fert the lawn ... and you might want to skip weed killing lawn care for a year or two.. until it really gets going.. besides that lawn doenst need it ... ergo a waste of money ...

good luck

ken