I am not really interested in recusing it size at this point but rather working on building the trunk up instead I bought the tree because I liked its size and basic structure. It is definatly a grafted tree right where the first branch comes out. I want to at least give if a year or two to try to work with things as they are before I go making any really drastic cuts. I may though turn it around and use what I had as the back for the front instead. In the spring I think i am going to plant it into a long shallod wooden box for a couple years unless I can do this sooner since I won't be reducing its root size?

I'd want to be removing the thicker branches at the top leaving the thinner ones.

m_wonnacott wrote: I am not really interested in recusing it size at this point but rather working on building the trunk up instead I bought the tree because I liked its size and basic structure. It is definatly a grafted tree right where the first branch comes out. I want to at least give if a year or two to try to work with things as they are before I go making any really drastic cuts. I may though turn it around and use what I had as the back for the front instead. In the spring I think i am going to plant it into a long shallod wooden box for a couple years unless I can do this sooner since I won't be reducing its root size?

OK, fair enough. Just realize: If you are going to grow out the trunk, you can pretty much give up on the branches that are there now: To get a thicker trunk you want to stimulate growth, resulting in fat branches. This will in the end result in you cutting of the branches and re-growing them.

You can easily transfer it to a shallow tray now; However, if you want to work on the roots beforehand (I would want to: You should untangle the roots, and plant them flat, radiation nicely from the centre, to create a nice nebari, or root flare. That can be a big blow to the tree, especially if your weather is better than ours (We are having 15 degrees and rain, up from 7 degrees and rain earlier this week). So no major root-work unless you want to risk loosing the tree (I still do rootwork in the middle of summer, but usually on treespecies I know)

Or you could grow one huge branch known as a sacrifice branch, leaving that one to grow will help thicken up the trunk.. In the mean time you can keep the others cut back.

Ok so after thinking about it and looking the tree over again I have decided to follow some of the advice given here. For one thing I decided to use what I had a the back of the tree for the front. This in turn allowed me to see a branch that would make a good new top for the tree so I went ahead and did the unthinkable and removed the top of the tree. I picked up some more wire to finish that as well as some 10 -10-10 fert to begin a fertilizer regimine.

I also plan to allow a sacrifice branch to grow out in order to encurage the trunk to thinken out. In the spring next year I will be getting a bit bigger pot more in proportion to the tree.

showing before with the old top and the branch that will be trained as the leader
[attachment:1]DSCF3640.JPG[/attachment]

lets try that again

[attachment:1]DSCF3649.JPG[/attachment]
full tree after apex was removed and before finishing wireing and a closer view of the big cut before I treated it with wound paste.

full tree after apex was removed and before finishing wireing and a closer view of the big cut before I treated it with wound paste.

Hey,
Great job,especially since it's your first. Now let it recover for a while.

Ya just water and fert till spring now. is it safe to start fertilizing now after removing a larg branch or should I wait a couple weeks?