As April 1 approaches, it will be the time of year again where it's illegal to prune elm trees in Saskatchewan.

The ban happens annually at this time of year when the elm bark beetles that spread Dutch elm disease are most active.

Michael Newell, the manager of parks for the City of Swift Current, said that since there isn't a lot of forest in Saskatchewan, we need to take care of it.

"Elms constitute a large percent of our urban forest," he said. "We are on the prairies, and in our area of Canada we don't have the multitude of trees that you would get in a British Columbia, Quebec, Ontario or the Atlantic provinces, so we want to keep our urban forest looking healthy and happy."

Signs of sick elm trees include wilting, yellowing leaves on one or several branches near the top which usually begins in June.

Newell adds that there are multiple ways that you can prevent the spread but the main wain to stop the spread of Dutch elm disease is not transporting any firewood.

Other ways are pruning your elms before or after the ban period to keep them healthy. Remove dead and dying elm wood means that there are fewer places for the beetles to breed.

The ban ends on August 31.