Rowan - again

:cnfs:Hello - you may remember my little rowan tree which last year sported a nest of eggs which never did reveal their secret (they hatched in the night and flew away). Well, this year it is in fine fettle, but it has a double stem and I would prefer a single stem. Can I prune one back, and ifI can ought I to paint it with some protective stuff, and if so what should I use? Please bear in mind that it is quite small (about 3 ft high this year) and I would prefer not to buy a huge expensive bucket of tree protecting stuff!

Thanking you

 

Hi Barbara,

You can remove the limb you don't want, taking care not to damage the area where it joins the tree, as this area holds the cells which will seal over the wound. No tree paint gunk required. That went out back in the eighties!

 

Thank you, that's good news. Obviously I'm a bit behind the times with my 'gunk' question!!