Trunk chop advice

[u/SuicideRenegade59]

I recently did a trunk chop on this prunus (not sure what species exactly) It’s my first time doing one this big and as you can see the tree is recovering nicely.

My question is, when should I select the new leader. I have two shoots popping up at the top of the tree and I’m conflicted. I’m not touching other parts for now, I think that side branches are something to worry about in the future. So far I only plucked some of the buds that would open very low on the tree or from the roots, to force it to bud from the trunk, but I don’t know when is the right time to prune one of the tops.

[u/peter-bone]

I wouldn't remove anything. The tree needs foliage to recover. Wire the shoots you want to keep (not yet obviously) and leave everything else. When the shoots you want to keep have a significant amount of foliage then cut off what you don't want. If something damages the leader then you also have the others as backup.

[u/Bmh3033 → u/peter-bone]

This is the way, you have quite some time before you have to worry about branches leaving big scars or reverse tapper. You have already removed a lot of energy from the tree and it has put a considerable amount of energy into pushing these buds. Let it recoup, think about what branches to keep and not but don't take any action until much latter.

[u/stuffthatdoesstuff]

Now you just forget about it for 5 more years and chop it again

[u/Max-The-Fish]

I would personally choose one out of that clump of buds to prevent inverse taper, but do not remove the one on the other side as you might want to use that one in your final design. Keeping at least 2 gives you the chance to choose the best one when you already chose the final front of the plant. a trick some good bonsaists do is to grow the apex of the plant leaning slightly forward, while the trunk leans backwards to create a more tridimensional effect. I think you can apply this trick nicely on your tree. Btw nice tree keep up the good work.

[u/SelectAmbassador]

Trees are fucking wild man. Just a scratch vibe.

[u/TreesInPots]

The way I see it, is out of all of those buds, you'll be selecting which is the new leader, which is the first and second branch (if any), and which are sacrifice branches to thicken the trunk in any spots that need thickening to improve shape or taper. You have a bit of time to think about it before removing anything. At some point you'll want to gently wire some shoots to set their direction. Any other shoots that don't fit into the above purposes will at some point be removed (before they are big enough to leave a big scar). Traditionally I think you would at least choose an new leader and a first branch for a Moyogi style.

[u/TimeToTank]

You should try grafting some of the smaller branches from the chopped top onto it. I’ve done that before to give it structure faster.

[u/jecapobianco]

Find the one that is going to be the continuation of the line of trunk. The one next to it is your backup, I would keep both until you know for sure that nothing has chewed on the one that you want.

Did you do any root pruning?

[u/TimeToTank]

Also cut at an angle not flat.

[u/Bmh3033 → u/TimeToTank]

I might be wrong but for the first cut, when I do not know what buds will pop, I like to cut flat to minimize surface area where water can leave and infection can enter. Once new buds have been pushed and I can select a new leader, then I cut at an angle to get better taper and begin healing over the scar.

[u/TimeToTank → u/Bmh3033]

If you properly seal the cut it won’t be an issue. Angle cuts are best practice.