Novice here. Making it go the tree way instead of the shrub way?

[UTUSN]

So last year planted some 1-gallon trees that sprung nicely to shoulder height by winter, but they developed many side branches that were making a shrub out of things. They weathered the winter and I waited for the almost-over winter pruning, when I trimmed off the side branches and chose the one most straight-up one to be the dominant trunk. So far so good.

Now in New Spring, the supposed trunk is sprouting leaf buds, great signs of life, but they are located all up and down the trunk, from LOW on up. I'm guessing this will turn it back into a shrub?

The very top tips of the trunks *do* look like they froze at the very top of the trunk, so is nothing going to happen up there? Do I keep lopping the side sprouts? I want to make trees. Help/thanks.

[Wellstone ruled]

1. Ah,a You Tube Moment.

Every Species is different in the Prune Stage. If you can not find a Tube Video for your Tree,go to your local Nursery and they will show you how to prune your tree.

[Botany]

2. What kind of plant is it?

n/t

[WheelWalker]

3. If the top shoot (leader) died back, you can train an upper side branch to replace it.

It will take a little time before the new leader is indistinguishable from the one that died back. If the leader died back in the winter, it might have been pushed too much for growth during the late summer and, not having enough time to harden off, was too succulent come winter. In most instances, a side branch will eventually gain leader dominance on its own, but that can be assisted by the gardener.

[Botany]

4. What kind of plant is it?

That is the most important thing to know before any pruning is done or
not done. BTW I really am an expert on this stuff.

[enough]

5. This is it. NT

[UTUSN]

6. Royal poincianas. Too late, the "pruning" was done a couple of weeks ago.

[Botany]

9. That plant is a bit out my range but I looked it up .....

.... it will not flower for @ least another 3 years. Work on developing a trunk and
its canopy structure ..... being tropical you can prune it @ almost anytime before
it starts going through its bloom cycle.

In the future try to plant only things that are native to your area. Although pretty
the flame tree will not help your local ecology/environment anywhere close to a
native plant. Also check to see if that tree is listed as an invasive plant too.

[WheelWalker]

7. Meant my post to be reply to OP.

[UTUSN]

8. Thanks

Sounds sensible, but do I lop off everything below?

[UTUSN]

10. An addition to WheelWalker's post #2: The remaining question was::

Last edited Wed Mar 7, 2018, 12:27 PM - Edit history (1)

*SIDE*/LOWER buds are popping down below on the trunk, and I was asking whether I should trim these off. To focus more, I want this trunk to go UP as a full tree. WheelWalker's answer about a TOP bud being trained to take over as the lead/future trunk was great for that part of things.

I called a friend who does some basic gardening about what to do about the LOW buds, whether to snip them off NOW, sort of SHAVING them off? She said to let them grow out some, to where some of them might become actual branches, and then prune those off, that nipping them off any younger than the branch stage will only get them to keep budding.

Apologies for intruding into this group. I usually post everything in Lounge regardless of topic (except politics), and a couple of times I've been told there to take the posts to where they belong (Cooking; garden.ding, whatever), but everybody goes to Lounge and just about any answers can be found there, so I'll stay put there, thanks!1


***********ON EDIT: The tentatively-definitive answer::

I consulted an employee at a gardening center, showing him a picture of the 5 feet high trunks with the side sprouts, telling him what I wanted, which is to grow the trunk into a tree, not with branches down below. He said to leave the top one-foot of sprouts and to prune off all the buds below that. Shockingly, for sure to the experts, I asked whether this meant "shaving" off the buds. He was shocked and said *NO* just use an ordinary pruning hand tool, no need to go deeper. He said that the lower pruning will give strength to the top foot of sprouts, that soon it will be clear which one is the most appropriate one to become the trunk above, upon which the surrounding ones can be pruned.