pruning

American  

[proo-ning] / ˈpru nɪŋ /

noun

1. the act or practice of cutting or lopping off undesired twigs, branches, or roots.

   Some pruning of your tea roses during the summer is useful to encourage growth and flowers.

2. the act or practice of getting rid of undesirable elements or excess.

   You can do this pruning of emails for an hour a day till you're down to an empty inbox.

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Etymology

Origin of pruning

First recorded in 1540–50; prun(e) ² ( def. ) + -ing ¹ ( def. )