Sometimes it's just up to mother nature........

Has anyone had any luck when doing selective pruning in the hope that plant energy is directed in a specific manner.

For me, one of my Limelight standards got uprooted by a storm, and one of the framework branches snapped off due to the impact. What was left was a 6 inch stub off the graft. I put glue on the tip and wished for the best. The remainder of the season, the stub looked healthy - no discoloration, bark was still the same going into winter.

Fast forward this year, I for sure thought it was a goner. The bark appeared to have peeled open during the offseason, and I could see the - guts under the bark per-se. I was thinking this stub, while hopeful it was still alive, it surely must be dead now, with the exposed bark that seemed to unravel itself.

Come mid-late spring, I noticed a bud/branch emerging so all smiles !I trimmed -most of the existing branching- a bit lower for this year -----THINKING---- more energy could potentially be focused to this 6 inch stub.

I was wrong. The tree still branched out like a Limelight, sending 3-4" new wood and the 2 branches that came out of this stub, was about as thick as a toothpick..

Honestly, in full leaf out and bloom, I don't even see this framework branching is amiss, as it's pretty full and round. In my -mind- , I know it's missing of the 5 primary branching points that are on it, but that's just a mental thing......

Anyhow, just curious. Has anyone done any selective pruning for a particular function and actually had sucess. Ha, I know once can prune for height, shape or just straight culling out. Wishful thinking I suppose.