For a new, immature plant I only take off dead wood. You need to feed a growing root ball and leaves feed the plant. Are you going to plant this or is it staying in a pot? The only thing you can do to prep for bugs and fungal diseases is keep them healthy. If you have those problems in your area you really can't do much about it ahead of time. If the plant is healthy it will be better able to fend off any damage. If you're going to do a regular spray program for diseases start now and be religious about doing it. Find out what diseases are prevalent in your area and use the proper product for those diseases. It's a good idea to rotate two different ones so the disease does not become immune to a certain product. But don't just buy two different name brands. Be careful to read the labels and find out what the active ingredient is because many different brand name products will use the same active ingredient and then you haven't succeeded in rotating anything. Never spray for bugs until you've seen them and properly IDed them. Since a lot of insect sprays only work on contact with the bug, spraying when they are not there is a waste of money and harmful to the environment. And until you know exactly what bug you have and what works on it you could be using a product that is not effective for the ones that show up. There are some insecticides that are systemic but they still may not be effective for the bugs you have or will get later. READ the labels carefully and completely and FOLLOW all the instructions on any product you use in the garden. Even the ones that are "organic" are some type of chemical and can have precautions listed.

NO. Let it grow. The important thing right now to to encourage growth and get the tree bigger. You can always prune for shape later. Doing so now might possibly shock the tree, or allow disease into the open wound, and will gain nothing. The second shoot, since it below the soil line, will probably develop roots, if left alone, and will be easy to start a new tree from is removed next spring. If you want a bush shape tree, then just leave it as is.

google rejuvenation pruning of flowering shrubs.. to get a general feel for what you are doing ... done right.. its a 3 year process .. of which.. you already did year one.. and the result are those new suckers ... and yes.. it can be a bit ugly during the process ... but keep in mind.. the leaves are the food making machines.. and if you take out the whole big chunk left.. you will be relying on ONLY those leaves from the suckers .. and thats not a lot ... i think i would take one half of that Y .. after it flowers ... and probably that last old hunk... late next spring ... you CAN NOT KILL A LILAC BY PRUNING... i do it year around.. whenever the darn thing tees me off ... never heard the winter part before.. unless its specific to where ever you are????? in the alternative.. again.. noting you cant kill them.. and you dont care if you miss the flowers.. take it all out .... been there.. done that ... it really boils down to whether you might want to do it 'right' ... and look at a heapin mess for 2 more years... or just want to be done with it.. knowing you cant kill it anyway ... no theory necessary.. as to determining your state of mind.. flip a coin ... ken

Here we plant collards year round. If planted in early spring, they grow all summer and you can crop off the leaves from the bottom of the plant to eat. As you harvest the leaves, the soil is hilled up around the main stalk. The plants will continue to root along the stalk. They will grow through summer, fall and most usually grow right through winter. We usually add a bit of 10-10-10 and compost every so often during the hilling process to feed them. They can get huge. Around April or May they will send up yellow flowers and make little pods full of seed, which you can save. By planting in spring you can have collards all year. I usually harvest lots for my chickens as well. They LOVE them! You can also plant them late summer, early fall and they will grow through winter but you will have smaller plants. No matter when I plant here, they make seed April or May. They really can take the heat and cold. Tough plants. BT will take care of the cabbage worms that also love them. Here's our collard patch. Plants were started early spring and this pic was taken 6-24-17. Good luck with your garden!