finishing-a-development-branch

To finalize a development branch after tests pass, you identify the correct base branch and select from four explicit workflow options: merge locally, push and create a pull request, keep the branch, or discard the changes.

The standard git workflow options for merging completed feature work include merging locally, pushing to create a pull request, keeping the branch for later, or discarding the work entirely. These four options ensure structured branch management.

You should create a pull request versus merging a feature branch locally based on your team's review requirements. The workflow presents both options after verifying tests and identifying the base branch, allowing you to choose the appropriate integration path.

Yes, branch management workflow requires test verification before merging. The process explicitly checks that tests pass before presenting the four integration options, ensuring only safe, verified changes proceed to the base branch.

The best way to clean up worktrees after merging a development branch is to execute the selected workflow action, which performs optional cleanup automatically. This ensures consistent removal of temporary worktrees once integration is complete.

Yes, you can keep a development branch instead of discarding or merging it. Keeping the branch is one of the four explicit options presented by the workflow, allowing you to preserve completed work for future integration without immediate cleanup.