In all of my hort classes, I was always taught to remove water sprouts, as they are generally "useless." I did some digging, and couldn't find much directly related to pruning water sprouts. Here's an abstract that was published in HortScience in 1998: Effect of Upright Shoot Removal on Fruit Size and Maturity of Four-year-old `Braeburn' Apple Trees P.I. Garriz, G.M. Colavita, H.L. Alvarez and A.J. Alvarez Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, Comahue National Univ., c.c. 85, 8303 Cinco Saltos, R.N., Argentina The effect of upright shoot removal on the progress of maturity and fruit size around the normal picking time were evaluated for apple fruits cv. `Braeburn' at the Experimental Farm of the Comahue National Univ., Rio Negro, Argentina, during the 1996Â97 growing season. The experiment was conducted on 4-year-old trees, spaced 4.0 x 2.3 m and trained to palmette leader. Average fruit load was 80 fruits per tree. Five trees per treatment were randomly selected; they were: 1) select cuts: water sprouts were eliminated entirely at 78 days after full bloom (DAFB) and additional removal of newly formed shoots arising from the scaffolds was performed at 120 DAFB; 2) control: trees received no cuts. From 158 to 184 DAFB, a sample of four fruits was taken from each tree at weekly intervals. Fruit size and internal quality were measured. Loss of leaf surface by shoot removal significantly decreased fruit mass by 4.74%, for all data combined (P So it appears there are some negative effects. I also found a dissertation from Cornell which addresses summer pruning, but it didn't specifically study water sprouts. From scanning it briefly, it appears that heavy to vigorous summer pruning can have negative effects on the trees. Here is a link that might be useful: Dissertation

Thanks. 1) Regarding planting them vs. keeping them in the containers - especially keeping them in the containers until fall, do I need to be worried about the roots crowding and the taproot in particular not being able to extend far enough down? Again, their planted in about 9 inches of good soil in the containers. I was of the understanding that the tap root will keep shooting down a couple of feet, at least. Also the sun is a bit of a worry, it is going to be hot and sunny here in Nashville this summer. 2) What is "hardening off?" 3) Finally, the acorn on a couple of these is sitting right at soil level - mostly exposed. And the acorn is totally buried on a couple of them. Do I need to cover or uncover the acorns to ensure optimal growth?

"Is this the reason for the apparent slow growth?" We can't tell why your tree is growing slowly from the information provided. My first shot-in-the-dark guess would be that it might be grafted onto a dwarfing rootstock. Roots coming from the scion would NOT make growth slow. If anything it would increase growth rate. "If I clip those roots off and remove a little dirt to lower the soil level will that reverse this?" No, it will not increase growth rate. However, I would definitely recommend removing the grass clippings from around the trunk. A situation like that will often lead greatly increase the chances for disease, rot, and even pests problems. If you decide to allow the scion to continue producing roots (and therefore killing off the rootstock), you might cover the existing roots with a light layer of soil. However, I would definitely not keep piling grass clippings up against the trunk. Also, be aware that if the scion roots and the rootstock is killed off, your tree could possible suffer in various ways (introduction of rot, poor root anchorage, etc). You might find more details about this with a search of this site. There are at least a couple of threads about scion rooting/root-stock ellimination. "Or, just how do I handle this and help these trees grow better?" Do you know what rootstock the tree is grafted onto? Did you plant the tree? Can you give us more details about how it was planted? Are there any signs of problems besides slow growth? Have you had your soil tested for nutrient levels? There are just too many variable to know what's causing the slow growth without more info.

When I just had one tree, all I had were branches unless I wanted to cut the top off of the one tree I had. Now it's no problem getting a vertical sprout. Had I known then what I know now I would have taken the top off and let new sprouts grow for cuttings. At first I wasn't even sure I could get starts to root. I built a cutting bed facing north with bottom heat and overhead misting on a timer. It worked wonders on all sorts of trees and shrubs. I even used it for germinating seeds. Cunninghamias do have a problem with branchlets that die and hang on for awhile before dropping. They break off easy in a wind or a light touch, and then fall all over around the tree. This can be annoying for the tidy gardener. I just throw them back towards the trunk and let them be and treat it as a groundcover. It helps to surround the tree at some distance to hide the brown mess, or keep the tree fully furnished to the ground enabling a hiding place for the branchlets. In my large garden the problem is mostly lost in the shuffle and I don't let it bother me too much. I don't have any close to the house where I have to pay attention to that much detail, and fortunately I'm not wound up very tight. ;-) Que sera, sera. Mike This post was edited by mikebotann on Wed, Sep 24, 14 at 12:00