Your choices are to go right after making a small tree out of it now, or allowing it to grow and making a bigger tree with better taper later. OR, you could but another and do one of each. What's your preference?

If you want a small tree, you'll need to prune it back harder to force buds from axils lower on the tree. After you prune, the top remaining pair of buds will each produce a new branch. One will be your new leader that the other will be the lowest branch on the tree. That isn't to say it will immediately become the lowest branch on the tree 'now', just that you'll start to develop that branch now by changing it's angle top grow more downward and pinching it after it grows a bit. Your new leader should change direction, so it should grow in a direction that leans opposite of the current trunk direction.

See how I cut this maple back and used a new branch (with the wire) as the new leader? the first branch of this tree will grow from the sharp curve/ elbow where the thin wired branch turn's left. all of the thick branch on the right will be cut off immediately above the small wired branch. This is called a 'sacrifice branch', it's only job being to thicken the trunk to add more taper to the tree as it ages.

Al

Thanks, Al.  I am trying to propagate the cuttings from when I cut this one back, if they are successful I can try keeping one of those as a smaller tree.

So the reason to cut back harder is to get more branches lower and thus thicker trunk?  

Could you please explain the bigger tree option as well?  You said if I allow it to grow it will have a better taper later. Why/how?

Well I found this little graphic of an olive bonsai and fell in love with it, and since my olive was already super wonky, I adjusted its position in the pot to mimic that. 

Should I start pinching?  What's the deal with olives, should I prune/pinch to leave 2 nodes?

It's hard to tell from the photos, but one of the branches is growing kinda downwards, I'm guessing I should keep that for now?

Thanks for any feedback!

So the reason to cut back harder is to get more branches lower and thus thicker trunk? No. The more leaves (food factories/ photosynthesizing surface area) the tree has growing on it, the faster it grows/ thickens. However, you can see now why I suggested you cut the tree back harder. If you had, the new lateral breaks would have occurred much lower on the trunk and they would be more appropriately positioned to become new branches. As it is now, the branches are so high on the tree, it would take a large tree for them to look natural; and, it doesn't look like the tree is very enthused about back-budding lower on the trunk w/o being forced to do so by pruning. You might get lucky and get some additional lateral breaks (new branches lower on the tree) if you have the tree outdoors in full sun where there is plenty of air movement and you're fertilizing at luxury levels.

Could you please explain the bigger tree option as well? You said if I allow it to grow it will have a better taper later. Why/how? If you allow the tree to grow, unencumbered by pruning, it will grow lots of leaves and thicken. When the trunk is appropriately thickened, chop it back hard.

The maple in the middle was about 9' tall when it was chopped. Here is the tree several years later after a series of chops to induce taper:

It's still a young looking tree, but it's coming together nicely, though it needs it's spring pruning in the image above.

This is the wound where it was chopped, almost completely healed. The image was taken this spring.

This is the latest image of it with its leaves on, taken last Aug.

Should I start pinching? What's the deal with olives, should I prune/pinch to leave 2 nodes? Yes. Ideally, you would have already pinched the new branches as soon as the second pair of leaves started growing on each branch. I would pinch all 4 new branches back to 2 pairs of leaves, which should give you 4 new branches, one in the axil of each the 4 leaves. That might also force new branching in the axils of leaves lower on the trunk.

If you decide not to prune back harder, you should decide now if you're going to work with what you currently have. I would start to build my tree from the lowest pair of branches and use one of the top pair of branches as a sacrifice branch. It's only job will be to help thicken the trunk. It will never be a part of the end composition, but it will help with the taper. Here is a Ficus natalensis with a very conspicuous sacrifice branch:

Notice how the entire tree (so far) has been built, and how much the sacrifice branch has added to thickening the trunk. Lower leaves and branches are regularly removed from the sacrifice branch so it doesn't shade branches that will remain as part of the composition. It would be better if your sacrifice branch was low on the trunk, but they work from higher up on the tree as well. You COULD try notching above some of the lower leaves to try to stimulate the buds in leaf axils. This would produce a branch low on the tree you could build a tree out of (and what's above that branch would become a sacrifice branch), or you could simply treat it as a sacrifice branch that is thickening the lower trunk.

Your tree has a branch arrangement like maples, jades, portulacaria, and many other trees. The leaves are arranged in pairs with each pair growing at 90* to the previous pair. IOW, if you have a pair growing left and right, the next pair (above and below) will be growing toward the front and the back; so, within a span of 2 nodes/ 2 pairs of leaves, you can choose what direction the branch will grow, just by pruning.

That should give you something to think about, and I'm guessing it will leave you with additional questions. Sorry I missed the post just above your most recent.

Al

Thought about you and your tree when Jonas sent me thisInspiring Link. Thought you might enjoy .....

Al