Q. The big snowstorm in February caused extensive damage to plants in my landscape. Big limbs were broken on a mature white pine, my red twig dogwood is absolutely smashed and the blue hollies do not look much better. Can you tell me how to prune out the damage properly and get them on the road to recovery?

A. It is hard to recommend specific pruning cuts without seeing the damaged plants, but I can make some general recommendations. First off, it is critical that you hire a certified arborist to deal with large trees that have sustained storm damage, such as your white pine. They have the training and equipment to properly and safely prune large trees, and to assess the future stability of damaged trees.

Undoubtedly, trees with major structural damage will have to be removed for safety's sake. It is hard to lose mature trees because it takes so long to replace the shade, shelter and character they bring to the landscape.

Although many fast-growing large trees have a well-deserved reputation for being weak-wooded, there are some that grow reasonably fast without that liability. Some replacement trees to consider include Freeman maples (Acer x freemanii), silver linden (Tilia tomentosa, especially 'Green Mountain'), dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides), disease-resistant American elms such as 'Valley Forge' (Ulmus americana) and Japanese zelkova (Zelkova serrata).

Home gardeners can safely prune broken branches from small trees and shrubs. In most areas, enough snow and ice has melted so that you can clearly see the problem areas. Cleaning up storm damage is mainly a matter of removing damaged branches and cleaning up the ragged edges created when they snapped. A clean, well-placed pruning cut will heal more quickly than a jagged tear and help restore trees and shrubs to health and good form.

Some small trees and shrubs have been damaged so severely that they will have to be replaced. Much depends on the growth habit and vigor of the damaged plant, as well as the severity of the damage.

There are some basic pruning principles you should know before you grab the pruning saw and limb loppers. This is going to be the condensed version because space does not allow me to go into great detail. I encourage readers to reference the Web sites listed at the end of the article for a more in-depth explanation as well as drawings of pruning techniques and equipment.

Especially when pruning small trees, if you must remove a limb back to its point of origin on the trunk, be sure to preserve the branch collar. This is a noticeable swelling where the branch joins the trunk. Make your pruning cut to the outside of the branch collar rather than making the cut flush with the trunk. The trick is not to leave a large stub while not cutting into the branch collar.

If the limb is more than 2 inches in diameter, be sure to use the three-cut method to prevent tearing the bark: Make the first cut up from the BOTTOM of the limb, 10 to 12 inches out from the trunk. Make the second cut 3 or 4 inches out from the first cut, down through the limb. As the limb starts to fall, the bark stops tearing at the initial under cut. The third cut removes the remaining stub while keeping the branch bark collar intact.

Do not use pruning paint or sealer of any kind; they can interfere with the healing process. Trees and shrubs heal quicker over good, sharp pruning cuts.

If the storm tore the bark down the side of a small tree, try to clean up the ragged edges with a sharp knife. Ideally, you want to excise the damaged bark in an elliptical (think football!) shape around the wound, but trim as close to the wound as possible to avoid damaging more bark.

Finally, you may not have to remove a broken branch entirely if you can remove the damaged portion back to an outward facing side branch. Always try to prune to side branches or buds that are growing or pointing out from the tree. Inward-growing branches can rub against each other and block air circulation and sunlight.

Suckering shrubs are the easiest to rejuvenate from this kind of snow and ice damage. These shrubs have several stems coming out of the ground. When you prune them -- especially if you prune them hard -- they often respond by sending up new stems (suckers).

Vigorous plants with a suckering growth habit can be taken to within several inches of the ground and allowed to regrow, which should remove any winter damage.

Although you will sacrifice this year's blooms on some shrubs (the ones that "bloom on old wood"), it is worth it to recover a strong, attractive framework of stems or branches.

This is best done sometime in March so the plant only has to produce a single flush of growth. Pruning later requires the plant to produce a second flush of growth, depleting its carbohydrate reserves.

Suckering shrubs include bottlebrush buckeye (Aesculus parviflora), summersweet (Clethra alnifolia), red twig dogwood (Cornus spp.), forsythia (Forsythia spp.), northern bayberry (Myrica pensylvanica), elderberry (spp.), lilac (Syringa spp.) and many others.

Other shrubs, such as your blue hollies, grow more like small trees, and you should follow the instructions above for pruning them.

For more detailed instruction on proper pruning, please visit the following Web sites:

Pruning ornamental plants (Penn State University) -- http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/PubSubject.asp?varSubject=Landscapes%2C+Ornamentals%2C+and+Houseplants&offset=105 (Scroll down the page to find Pruning Ornamental Plants)

Pruning and care of tree wounds (Ohio State) -- http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/3000/pdf/HYG_3311_09.pdf

Doug Oster writes a blog, "Growing With Doug," exclusively at PG+, a members-only web site of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.