should I prune these cedars?

[Modat22]

I have about 15 cedar trees like these on my property. all of them are over 28 inches in dia. I was planning on cutting 3 up for lumber this spring.

First, what type of cedar is this.

Second, should I go ahead and prune most of the branches off the trunk on all the trees?

[Furby]

Looks like Eastern Red Cedar to me.

[Ianab]

Not much point pruning the branches off now. The knots from each branch will go right thru the trunk back to the pith. Taking the branches off wont change that, and the tree isn't going to grow over the knots and produce nice clear timber before you cut them down.
Best to have a look around for some 8" dia ones and start trimming the bottom branches off them. That way when they get to 28" there will be mostly clear wood in the log, and your kids will have a great time milling them  ;)

Prune early in the trees life to create a nice clear butt log, then just wait for it to grow

Cheers

Ian

[Modat22]

I didn't know that, the knots will look good in many projects though. I don't have any kids and no plans and making any so I guess I won't be worrying about pruning those small trees for the future.

[Ianab]

I didn't know that, the knots will look good in many projects though.

Yeah.. the branches are fairly small and supressed so there will be some good timber in there, with some small knots for effect 

Ian