Can I Trim My Medium-Sized Trees Myself?

Q: We have five medium-sized trees in our landscape. They need to be trimmed up at the bottom and thinned out to keep branches off the house. Is this something I can do or do I need a pro? 

A: My advice is that if you’ll need to use a ladder to prune a tree, you need a professional. As proof, I offer my own broken rib and two friends’ broken arms. All three of us decided at one time or another to ignore the ladder advice. Find a pro at georgiaarborist.org.