Yep, I'd prune them off as you suggest. You can limb up (remove the smaller branchlets/twigs) a little on the other side for better symmetry. You won't need to remove any larger branches on the front side, from what I can tell. And, you don't necessarily need both side totally equal. Sometimes semi-symmetry can look pretty symmetrical or at least more pleasing to the eye.

If you read other posts on here, you probably already know how to prune, but, if you have any questions about that, please ask.

is this the project we debated endlessly a year or so ago ...

wherein you planned on planting more stuff than i would have put on 5 acres.. and i bugged you endlessly .. and then gave you permission to live your dream ..????

a bare tree .. is perfect for looking at structure.. and deciding where you want to go with this tree in the next decade ...

i propose that you decide if you are going to raise the canopy COMPLETELY over the garage ... and i suggest that you do so ...

and if you agree with that ... then you make a 3 to 5 year plan for such ...

first.. we are loathe to start canopy removal on a newly planted tree ... every leaf is a food making machine .. to grow the roots .. to get your tree FULLY ESTABLISHED ...

though we wouldnt mind removing a few small branches.. or any branches that are damaged or crossing [future damage] ....

second.. we should decide which branch will become the leader in 5 years ... there appears to be only one relatively straight potential leader .... but that will end up with a kinked trunk .... which will fill out over the decades ... and the kink will disappear ...

on the first pic .... the main stem.. which your yellow lines come off.. is at about 1 oclock ... but just to the left is one that seems to be at noon high ... and that is the one i would consider as the 5 year leader ...

looking at the second pic.. its still noon high ... and i would look.. at removing the right trunk completely ...

now.. that is enough for you to think about for a while ... and for others to agree/disagree .... and maybe get some better pix ... and make some 5 to 10 years decisions ..

there is never a hurry to prune.. it can be done anytime .... but you can not nail branches back on.. lol .. but you need to have a long term plan ...

do my peeps agree.. or not..

ken

Ken, you've read my mind. I was thinking along those lines, but wasn't sure how to carry it out. Yes, I'd like to get the entire canopy up over the garage.

I uploaded a better pic that I found from a few weeks ago (excuse the mess, I'm in the process of putting in a small pond between the birch, serviceberry, and sweetbay), so let's see if I follow you.

A will be the main leader, and B will come off down the road. C would eventually get everything below the garage on it pruned off. Wondering if the branch opposite the crotch of C would eventually come off as well, or wouldn't that matter because it's not on the garage side (and would provide a fuller form)?

I realize this is a multi-year plan, so I will leave those branches between the yellow marks (in first pics) alone if there's no need to take them off this year. Again, the tree has been in the ground for one year.

Does this all sound like a good plan? When I'm 100 yrs old in 2072, I'm wondering how the birch will coexist with the white oak (to the left, in the first pic) that's equal height right now and 20' or so away.

{{gwi:328370}}

so is this the old project... i seem to recall being enthralled by the stone house ..

no on ABC .... well ... yes on AB ... but i am thinking the right branch on C

lets see what others say ... ken

Eh... I see what you are saying and I agree for the most part. Are you pruning B off because it will over hang the pond?

The problem with pruning this tree due to branch crotch issues is it will always have dicurrent issues. Even above C there is another Y junction up above that will be just as weak as A and B down the road. If my intentions were to keep it, over time I would limb the foliage branches up all the way to even with the roof keeping A and B.

Still not too late for removal either ;) That would make a great place for a shrub border along the wall there.

Been working on this critter for 15 years or so - not a black birch but a river birch. Slowly have removed all of the house side branches to prevent wear on the siding and roof. The perspective in this photo is a bit deceiving. The branches you see over the roof are actually several feet above and are no threat now.
It looks like you have about three feet between the large (left) side of C and the roof - if it were mine I would do as I have done on the one below and slowly remove smaller branches on the house side, then let it branch out above. Since the branches keep drooping I have had to keep it clear about 8' above the roof, but now it is doing what I wanted which is to shade the roof without rubbing on it.
hortster

{{gwi:328371}}

Hmmm. Good points for removing B and leaving B. Not too worried about shading the pond. Here's one more pic from my roof. If you can see in the white oak, it's a little crooked leaning right. If I got rid of B, the birch would be similar, but leaning right. Might be neat. I don't know.

If I had a do-over, especially looking at it in the fall, I'd plant a conifer or two in the back instead for privacy. Now it's the land of misfit trees in that back area (if anyone recalls my sweetbay nightmare where it got dug out and sat in the cold for 3 months until I moved it to its current location).

{{gwi:328372}}

Prune it and don't worry about it. Trees are programmed to accept the loss of a branch or two. And since it's a birch, which typically needs little pruning, and which typically has a relatively short lifespan, there is little if anything to worry about.

+oM

werent these just planted???

you MIGHT under-dig on the side opposite the lean.. and pull it straight ...

i did not want to tell you the birch is leaning also .. lol

ken

the green is the straightest tree you will ever have .... as the trunk thickens.. it will straighten ... or seem to

{{gwi:328374}}

{{gwi:328375}}

Prune the birch in May after it has fully leafed out otherwise it will leak sap like a sive. More annoying than anything. I was stubborn and pruned a Heritage birch in Feb and it stained the white bark.

Although its quite drastic I somewhat like what Ken is suggesting. I did something similar to a Celebration Maple. The first year I regretted the decision but after three years it looked good again.

If you are going to "underdig" the tree, MOVE the sucker. It could go four or five feet farther away. The birch and the others are crowded already! Less pruning for the roof in the future. Heck, you'll move before then anyway...
hortster

if you all have some time to kill.. check out the link ... and peruse some of the attendant posts ... the copy/paste immediately below has a pic of his monstrous yard and what he had planned for it ... he really doesnt have 5 feet to move the tree ... lol .... but he has a dream:

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/trees/msg0714154917778.html?13

i was looking thru other posts .. and i ran across one where you had your 4 foot level across the top of the ball ... for plumb ...

i tried that .. it doesnt work ... i have found.. that you need to eyeball it ... using corners of houses, fence posts .... garages.. etc [things that are surely plumb] .. from at least 45 degree angles all around the plant ....

it is more of an aesthetic ... than a science ... it is what is pleasing to the discerning eye.. rather than a measurable thing .. and the top of the ball is irrelevant ... but for the trunk/root interface being at grade ...

regardless ... learn how to prune.. and practice at it ... that is the point of me taking the time to amend your pix in my editor ... and post them for you ...

and if you ruin the tree ... which i doubt... you can always remove it ... but try to come to that conclusion before you have to pay someone to come in and do it...

your quest for knowledge.. and the fact that you are living your dream in a very limited space.. inspires me .... you could do a lot of damage on acreage.. lol ... keep up God's work

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link

Just a completely random note, have you thought about planting a row of arbs to block that drab fence and the neighbors that butt right up against that fence.

The green would look really nice this time of year.

Thanks again for all the advice.

A few notes: I did plant that with an intentional lean to balance out the left leader, and that was the last time I ever tried to use a level - eyeball ever since. Also, thought about a row of arbs for a privacy screen, but in the end I couldn't sacrifice the opportunity for more species. (Oh, and there's a small buttonbush against the fence as well.)

Two last pics below from this weekend. In the one on the left, what you couldn't see in the previous pics is that there is another level of crookedness to account for if I try to go single leader. The second is just a clearer pic of the branches.

No rush to decide now, but I'll update when I do. I agree that if I prune, it will be good practice/experience, if nothing else. On the other hand, I appreciate randomness and asymmetry in nature, so a crooked, dual leader tree (pruned a bit away from the garage) would be just fine as well, especially since I rarely even notice this when the tree leafs out.

{{gwi:328377}}

there is never a hurry when pruning... subject only to your ability ...

i like to do it ... myself!!!! .. BEFORE i have to pay for it to be done ...

you have a few years to worry about that ...

now.. and finally.. i have been dancing around this ... the bottom line.. is that you did not choose a prime specimen .. and that is the root of your inability to make easy decisions ...

i hope you learn from this .. and if you have to buy more trees ... do NOT buy one with a Y that low ... i do understand.. its near inherent in birch.. but you could have done better ...

love it.. live with it.. practice pruning on it.. and if sooner or later it really gets to you.. get rid of it.. live and learn ...

ken

Among other misplaced ideas, black birch was suggested by a LArch I hired for a one-time consultation at the start of my project during my plant-a-bunch-of-giant-trees-ASAP phase. That particular tree was the last one of any size they had at the nursery -- I wonder why. I've learned a lot since then, including making sure that a LArch is also an arborist before I ask for tree advice. In hindsight, I would've done that back area completely different, but it's a native with benefits, so I'll keep it for now as an experiment. I do have a wood burner and dry my own wood, so there are options.

One last thought on pruning your birch - I know that if I prune my river birches at this time of year they begin to bleed later in the spring when the sap rises. Doesn't hurt the trees but looks nasty. After the foliage fully emerges they won't bleed when pruned. Perhaps another reason added to ken's as to why there's no hurry...
hortster

Chiming in late here, but I wonder which direction is south on your lot? The tree will naturally grow in that direction and will show the strongest growth on that side. I think either leaders A or B could end up being just fine as your central leader depending which direction is south. Perhaps both A and B depending on the species (I'm not familiar with black birch) and limbing it up above the garage.

On a tree that size I would remove about 20-25% of the wood that needs to be removed each year, until after about 4 or 5 years you have achieved the basic shape you want.