Have the upper branches been bare of foliage all summer? Or have they just lost their leaves earlier than the rest of the tree? It should be easy to tell if the ends of the branches are dead, if so, they can be pruned off anytime. It all depends on how big the tree actually is, whether or not to start pruning. If it was very small when you planted a couple years ago, I would give it another year or two, but that's just my preference.
My redbud is in full sun also, and it would have benefited from some afternoon shade it's first couple years. By late summer it's foliage would get a little burned and start losing leaves early. By it's third or fourth year, it started doing a lot better. I think a redbud does fine in full sun once it's root system grows and matures a few years.

STOP!!! Put down those pruners!

You need to find out why your tree's top is bare first. It's unlikely to be because it's in full sun. There are thousands of Eastern Redbuds here around Knoxville, TN in full sun doing just fine. They are naturally understory trees, but they're able to take full sun if given sufficient moisture. Something besides sun exposure is causing the loss of foliage.

Next, you don't want to ever just "hack off" branches! You need to spend a little time exploring how to properly prune trees. There are many resources online available through a simple google search. Pruning incorrectly can be the beginning of the end for a tree.

Can you give us a little more info about the tree? When was the tree actually planted (time of year)? When did you first notice the problem? Was the tree planted properly? Is the root flare at or just above ground level? Were amendments added to the soil? Is the tree properly mulched? How about soil moisture? Pictures showing the canopy and the bottom portion of the tree (ground level) might really help?

This is the Eastern redbud from previous post...Please Help..

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The tree was planted Mothers day 2007 The "root flair" is not above, but at ground level. Mulched, yes. Also added amendments based on my local nursery's suggestion to my soil(though I don't remember the name now). The top foliage has been missing most of summer....Actually it was quite sparse for any foliage most of Spring(we have very harsh winters). I'm embarrassed to say I did some aggressive pruning this spring when it wasn't doing much of anything...I was excited initially when it seemed to respond well just a few weeks later.but then mid-summer it seemed to fall short,likely due to my inapt ability and know how...Shame on me. I suppose I should've known better than to use the word "hack" in this forum..

It sounds like maybe the top is sparse because of winter damage.

It's hard for me to get a real good feel for the form of the tree with just that one picture. I might change my mind if I saw it in person, but I think what I would do is to wait until late winter/early spring (before bud break) next year. Then I'd cut the tree back to within about an inch of the ground. The tree will respond by sending up multiple shoots (in my experience, usually about 5 or 6). Choose the most vigorous shoot from below the root collar and remove the rest. The tree should regrow at a very fast pace. As it grows, pay particular attention to branching attachment angle and prune/correct as needed. In just a few years, you should have a well formed tree.

Go to the non-leaved portion of the tree, and try to bend a small branch. If it breaks, it's dead.

Redbud are notorius in my experience for having trouble when transplanted. Was the original tree in a pot, or balled and burlaped, or bareroot. They often dieback, but the "good part" is that they'll resprout from roots.

Was this a "general/generic" redbud or a special cultivar (there are now cultivars that show red or yellow coloring on the new growth or varigated leaves or have differences in their flowers). If it was a special cultivar, it was likely grafted and you now have a "generic" redbud. If you were only planting a regular/generic redbud do the following:

Find out if there is any growth from the original trunk. If there is no growth in the original trunk, use and handsaw and cut off at the ground. If the growth from the original trunk is alive but weak (and this is not a special cultivar [see paragraph above]), I'd do the same thing. Then decide the following: Do you want a single trunk'd tree or a multi-trunked tree? If single remove all but the strongest stem. If multi-trunked leave the three strongest and remove the rest. It should do fine. I did know one tree that died to the ground twice before hitting its stride, but it will eventually reward you with a great tree.

I must have been asleep. I didn't even think about whether the tree was a grafted cultivar. If so, and you want to try to retain the variety, pruning the leader back to a strong healthy shoot may be your only hope. As mauch1 was saying, if you were to cut to the ground as I suggested and you started with a grafted cultivar, you'd end up with a generic/species Cercis canadensis.

I should have also said, if it *is* a grafted cultivar, and there is any life above the original graft, then cut *everything* off but the life above the graft. Rootstocks/understocks that sprout and are left to grow rob strength from the grafted scion. If the growth above the graft is weak, you may still lose the plant.

Pet peave: in spring going around seeing weeping cherries that the understock has sprouted on and never removed. Eventually the understock overgrows the grafted cultivar.

If you really want to keep the tree, I'd have an arborist come out and look at it.

They typically will come out to yard and review all your plants free of charge...make recommendations from there.

Its hard to say if you have winter dieback or some sort of canker.

If your willing to take a chance (what I'd recommend as it young and poorly situated - likes some shade and dislikes prevailing winds), I woud take brandon7's suggestion and prune that entire section to the next healthy shoot....first use your finger nail to scrap various secitons of the leafless branches. If brown, its dead, prune now. It its green, leave it and check it again late fall.

So Kristina, do you know whether your tree is a grafted cultivar or just a plain Eastern Redbud?

i doubt it matters whether it was a named grafted cultivar ...

its most likely dead above where the multiple sprouts came out ... and that is why all the sprouts ....

i had one die to snow cover 3 years in a row.. and eventually ... i was able to reduce all trunks to a single.. and get it to grow into the tree it was supposed to be ...

if its the plain old species .... just start removing some of the extra trunks ....

if you can provide a pic where all the trunks come out.. perhaps we can give more help on what to remove ...

you will have a hard time killing the species .... as it is vastly apparent.. that the roots have taken hold.. and are producing enough food.. now ... to sustain top growth ... it will just be a matter of taming it back into a form that pleases you ...

ken

Ken, In the picture it appears that shoots are coming from at least mid way up the trunk. If Kristina's tree is a grafted cultivar and that's what she wants to keep, then knowing that information is critical in deciding of what to do. If she treats the tree as a species specimen and removes everything just above ground level, the cultivar is lost. If the tree is not a grafted cultivar, I see little sense in retaining the upper part of the tree.

Whether a viable tree will result if the tree is treated so as to retain the cultivar is another issue. We can discuss that once we know what she has/wants.

Now it's just a run of the mill redbud volunteer but my neighbor has a beautiful vase shaped tree with 8 or 9 trunks coming up all wrapped together.

Seems 15 years ago a recently departed Airedale of his kept chewing the baby redbud back to the ground. Eventually a number of sprouts came up and ended up wrapped around eachother.

Obviously this won't work in all situations. Especially if you're looking for a singly trunk tree form. For what its worth I have trouble transplanting redbuds so I might be inclined to try pruning it slowly back into tree shape if that's what you want.

hey brandon..

to my eye.. it looks like they are all coming from very near the bottom... not midway ...

but that is why i asked for a better picture... if surgery was contemplated ....

ken