Several weeks ago, the power line cleanup crew came thru my area like the wrath of god and cut down two lovely little dogwoods and a flowering crabapple INSIDE my fence line and well away from their right of way. I was "promised" replacement trees but have yet to see one. The stumps, which were cut right to the ground, are sprouting new growth. The new shoots on the dogwoods are about 12-14 inches tall; there are about 8 of these sprouts coming off of each stump. The shoots on the crab are about 1-2 feet tall and there are about 6 of them (varying height). I'm hoping to get my trees back from this new growth. My question is: When should I select one of these sprouts to become the main trunk of the new tree? There is no problem about these being grafted trees and sprouting from rootstock. They are not. All 3 trees are growing from their own roots.

Do I select the best sprout NOW and prune away the rest? Or should I wait until next spring to see which one(s) have survived the winter?

My biggest worry is that removing any of this new growth might kill what's left of the root systems. The dogwoods were both about 6 feet tall (2 inch diameter trunk); the crab was about 10 feet tall (4 inch diameter trunk).
It's getting late in the year (I'm zone 6) and I want the new growth to harden off a bit before winter if possible. Any suggestions would be very much appreciated.

I would wait till spring, to make sure they survive. Also you now have a choice of having multitrunk trees, that can be very pleasing too.

I totally agree with Frostweed, especially after the winter we had last year!! I can't believe how many trees and other plants were killed here, not just new ones but well-established, hardy trees.

It is also possible you will not get the same trees if they were grafted.

Thanks everyone. I think I'll provide a little wiinter protection to the new shoots as well, in the form of burlap wind barriers. No chance of a different tree, these were all growing on their own roots. I'll let you know how it goes!

hi, Annie! I'm so sorry to hear about your trees.

A friend of mine had a similar problem when the leader branch on her magnolia tree was damaged and she had to create a new leader branch. I'll ask her for more info about that.

I know very little about dogwood propagation but I do know that each species is not always propagated the same. The cuttings are different too in different species. There are almost as many ways to propagate dogwood as there are different dogwoods.This is what I do know about flowering dogwood... June and July softwood cuttings 5 or 6 inches long; Tip (terminal) cuttings are the easiest to grow, and they produce a straight trunk tree, hardwood cuttings are the more difficult........that is not very much but it is all I can remember....would you possibly be able to get your hands on a book called "The reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation" by Michael A. Dirr and Charles W. Heuser, Jr. We used this as our bible for many years and it is so worth it if you can find a copy. I realize in your case it is a once and done thing but maybe your library has a copy, or you can find a nursery that has one you can use to make a copy of whatever species you are trying to grow again. My first thought is why not just leave it grow where it is and see what happens? It just may come back even better if it is not that old a tree. Six feet should still be a pretty young tree. I wish I could help you more.

LysmachiaMoon said:My question is: When should I select one of these sprouts to become the main trunk of the new tree?
Do I select the best sprout NOW and prune away the rest? Or should I wait until next spring to see which one(s) have survived the winter?

Agree with waiting till the spring and seeing how it looks then! My gardening friend with the damaged magnolia tree said she did some research on creating a new central leader for her tree, and she ended up using a stake as a splint to force another branch or limb to become the central leader. She used a wooden stake, and then secured the new leader branch with soft garden ties. She has been gradually tightening the ties holding the new leader upright as it begins to grow more upright.

Of course, with the regrowth so new on your dogwoods I agree it makes sense to wait and see.

Thanks everybody! Here's the plan: I'm going to weed/mulch around the sprouting stumps to give them as much sunlight/nutrients/room as possible. I'll give them some minimum winter protection (burlap screen to prevent sunscald/wind damage) and then I'll see what they look like in the spring. once I see the sprouts are growing, I'll select one or two (probably one for the crab; two for the dogwoods) and remove the others. Then we'll just wait and see what happens.

Sounds like a good plan Annie