pruning

/ˈpruːnɪŋ/
verb
  1. To cut off dead or overgrown branches from a plant to encourage healthy growth.
    • She prunes the apple trees every winter to improve the harvest.
    • He learned how to prune roses from his grandmother.
    • You should prune the dead leaves to keep the plant healthy.
  2. To reduce something by removing unnecessary parts.
    • The writer pruned several chapters to make the book shorter.
    • We need to prune the list of candidates down to five finalists.
    • The committee decided to prune the budget by cutting travel expenses.
noun
  1. The act of cutting off dead or overgrown branches from a plant to encourage healthy growth.
    • Spring is the best time for pruning most fruit trees.
    • The gardener spent the afternoon doing careful pruning of the rose bushes.
    • Regular pruning helps keep the hedge thick and neat.
  2. The act of reducing something by removing unnecessary parts.
    • Budget pruning meant cutting several programs from the school's schedule.
    • A good pruning of old files freed up space on the computer.
    • The editor did a heavy pruning of the manuscript to cut it down to size.