Question
I have a 2 year old rose of sharon bush that has 3 smaller trunks that fan out.  I would like it to have 1 main trunk so it looks like a tree.  can you give me detailed instructions how to do that (as I am not much of a gardener).  Thank you so much.

Answer
Dear Claire

Thank you for your very interesting question.

To give your rose of sharon a more tree-like appearance take a good close look at the three 'trunks' - you need to select the one that is most upright.  Using a small saw, or a specialist pruning saw, remove the remaining 2 stems by taking off about 1/2 to 2/3 of each stem to reduce the weight. Next saw off the remainder of the stems as close as possible to the
'trunk' you want to keep and trim any raggedy bits with a clean sharp gardening knife.

At this point there are 2 schools of thought

1. seal the cuts with a compound you can get from the garden center in order to keep moisture in and infection out, or

2. don't seal as you might be sealing infection in!

As this is an operation that should be carried out in the fall when the sap will be falling, I personally wouldn't use a sealer.

Lastly, you might want to put a stout supporting stake into the ground close to the plant, at an angle of about 45 degrees to the rose of sharon, and fasten the two together using a tree tie (also available from the garden center).  Make sure that the stake is on the windward side of the plant so that when the wind blows the plant is being blown away from it.

Next spring when the plant goes into active growth check the 'trunk' and the area around the severed stems and pull off any developing leaves in order to encourage the plant to put all its energy into growing that one trunk you've selected!

Good luck - I hope your rose of sharon develops into a lovely tree!