Japanese maple

Question

Have a Japanese maple. Suffered a big split in the trunk at the top portion of the tree it has bloomed below the split not above and I have trimmed back all the dead branches above the split. Long story short the basic tree has a lot of new shoots all around the center of the trunk and it has one existing older big branch that looks out of place my question is can I cut that bigger Branch back without hurting the rest of the tree to make itmore uniform shape and size.

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Answer 1

Is the older, big branch the one that is almost touching the ground? If so, when you remove that there won't be much left. The new growth in the center may be water sprouts and suckers from below the graft. I can't tell from the photo. If so, you might be better off to start with a new tree. At this point it won't hurt to try it and see what happens. But wait till late winter when the plant is dormant to remove the large branch.

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/trees/japanese-maple/japanese-maple-care.htm

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/trees/tgen/can-grafted-trees-revert-to-their-root-stock.htm