finishing-a-development-branch

To finish a development branch after tests pass, you can choose from four explicit options: merge locally, push and create a pull request, keep the branch as-is, or discard the work, with optional cleanup to remove worktrees and keep the repository clean.

The best ways to merge a completed git feature branch involve evaluating four deterministic paths: local merge, pushing a pull request, keeping the branch, or discarding it, ensuring you verify the base branch and execute the chosen action with appropriate cleanup.

Yes, branch cleanup and finishing actions are gated by passing tests to ensure stability. The process verifies the test suite passes before presenting merge, pull request, or discard options to finalize the feature safely.

You should discard a git branch instead of creating a pull request when the completed work is no longer needed, selecting the discard option from the four explicit finish actions to remove the work and perform necessary repository cleanup.

Yes, you can keep a development branch as-is without merging or creating a pull request. The skill presents keeping the branch as one of four explicit actions to finalize your feature, alongside local merge, PR, or discard options.