Cut the secondary trunk off back to the main trunk. Remove branches annually (best done during dormant season... now) to 50% of tree height as the tree grows (when they're small so it's easier to do and it re-directs growth to the top... rather than into the unwanted trunk and branches.) To straighten it out, stake and guy this tree now (while it's young and flexible.) Looks like the little tree behind needs some of the same attention. Others will probably tell you, too...Silver Maple is not considered a very desirable tree as it has some bad habits. Hopefully you don't need a refined appearance down the road as it can become quite scruffy looking. It will look decent during its youth and teenage years, then begin to acquire a lot of dead wood. The wood is weak, too.

Ok, don't lob a snowball at my head but for some reason this year I am not in the whiney pre-spring stage. This winter has seemed to go by fast and while I am of course looking forward to spring, I am not in the least unhappy with winter. We're going through some of our coldest temperatures right now as usual, with overnights well below zero - but I'm ok. What I am most happy about is that suddenly the days seem appreciably longer. I love being able to watch the sunset through the bare trees *from home!* instead of seeing a bit of it as I drive my 40 minute commute home and then have it be darkening as I pull in the drive. Still, a pot of mini roses to fuss with wouldn't be a bad thing at all. I've done that before and ended up with as many as 5 nice little plants that went outdoors in spring to become a pretty border to my front flower bed. Hmmm...I'll have to go shopping after work today. :-)

in theory.. whorl is a conifer term ... but i used it here ... first year of planting.. NEVER prune.. every leaf is a food making machine to grow new roots.. simple enough .... this year.. their job is done ... a little canopy reduction ... removal of those branches .... to balance out with the root mass below.. which are still probably lesser than what they should be.. will NOT hurt this tree at all ... think of it this way ... with a given amount of roots.. spreading growth over all of the tree .. versus the tree minus those branches .... if you want more top growth.. more vigor.. remove the bottom branches .... and it will rocket skyward ... its budding out nicely ... and is going to take off like a rocket.. my prediction anyway .... cut them now.. and leave a one inch wound.. or cut them in fall.. and leave a 2 inch wound ... your choice.. trees heal themselves.. anything you can dream up is contrary to nature.. period .... but the bottom line.. its a maple.. you can run it over with the car.. and it will probably survive.. do NOT overthink it all ... dont kill it with too much love [no fert] .... water and mulch it properly ... and step back ... take off those bottom branches.. and i wouldnt be surprised if it doesnt double in size by leaf fall ... probably will anyway.. lol.. they are weeds... good luck ken ps: this is probably the only post ever where i havent suggested that you just kill a maple... consider yourself lucky ... lol ..

If you are very careful and attentive, you can have a nice Silver Maple...they need to be trained to keep them away from the limb-splitting form that wants to develop. Most people aren't that attentive though. I've seen plenty of ugly ones and a handful of pretty nice ones which central trunks and no or very few narrow crotches. I had two of these trees in my parents' yard growing up; a male and a female. Obviously, this was a bad combination; seeds were everywhere in late spring, followed by seedlings of course. It was neat to see them bloom as they were usually first, even earlier than Red Maple, but the flowers aren't very attractive; more of a novelty. The form of the trees was untidy (previous property owners were NOT attentive at all), and of course, storms made it worse as limbs would break off and my parents had no money to hire tree trimmers every time there was a break, so they just got uglier with age. Finally my parents' got some inheritance when my grandparents died and among other things, took them both down. I miss the shade, but not the trees themselves.