Question
I live in the N. Dallas, TX area (Zone 7b)and have just transplanted several Yaupon Holly trees to different locations on my property. One of the trees was being crowded out by another YH tree so it has branches on the bottom 1/3 and on the top 1/3 but is bare in the middle.

My question: Is there anything I can do to encourage growth of new branches in the mid 1/3?

Answer
The light should help encourage sprouting but it will depend on the age of the tree and the condition of the bark of the trunk. Young bark will contain buds but as the tree grows older the bark thickens and the buds die out. Might try fertilizing the tree with 10-10-10 fertilizer at the rate of 1 lb per inch of trunk diameter scattered around the tree and watered in good. About a cup or 1 1/2 for small trees. I would do this now and again in a couple of months and make sure the tree have an inch of water per week. Place a pan under the tree and trunk the sprinkler on and when the pan has 1 inch in it stop. Especially water during the hot dry Dallas summer. Mulch around the tree with not more than 3 inches deep of organic mulch (pine straw good)and not piled up on the trunk. This will help hold moisture around the root.