I know they are 'famous' for suckering in the wild. Sometimes trees that fall or are felled by idiot loggers regrow from the stump with a mass of suckers. I think it's fairly common in the wild so it doesn't surprise me it happens with cultivars either. I think you might be OK if you continue to prune them(the tree might give up and start pushing at the top), but I'm hardly an expert here - We'll need someone more experienced.

-Will

Houstonpat,

To keep the true cultivar, you will need to remove any suckers, as well as, any branches that may sprout below where the graft union. These "suckers" I see all the time and have to remove from my Elderberries, i.e.

The only information my best book supplies me with is: 'if a tree is coppiced intentionally, it will regrow. This mention is due to allowing gardeners, with smaller landscapes, the ability to grow this tree.'

To answer your question, you'll have to access the movement/progress, of them, to determine what (you) should do. Until someone comes along with better information... that's all I 'got'.

Rushforth, Keith ÂConifers (1987); First published in the United States in 1987 by Facts On File, Inc., 460 Park Avenue South, New York, New York 10016; ISBN: 0-8160-1735-2.

Dax

I certainly wouldnt spray anything, aside from poisoning the ground you would be harming the tree. The suckers are most likely the same DNA as the tree as it is unlikely the tree is a graft. Sequoia takes so well from cuttings, even without hormone, and grows so fast a graft was probably unnecessary. Once you get a good leader growing the "suckers" should relax a bit - they will still sprout but will probably not grow anywhere near as fast as the rest of the tree. Just keep removing them, the tree will certainly keep putting them out. It is not uncommon to see huge trees in peoples front yards with a small hedge of sprouts at their base.

Pulling them off by hand (while still small) may rip the dormant buds out at the same time, significantly reducing basal sprouting.
It works with other trees but I have not tried it with Sequoia.

Thanks for the help Kim. Thanks for the info forest. The only two Sequoia's I've seen were grafted, Sequoiadendron. However, I don't think it would make any difference whether propagating, Sequoiadendron or Sequoia sempervirens. Your cuttings theory I would think should hold water, as well, to the tune of Metasequoia-propagation since they too are related to Sequoia. A nice triangle there. No suckers come from Metasequoia though, that's the only difference among these three...

Thanks a lot,

Dax