Optimum time to pinch off buds?

[Cajunrider]

On hawthorns and ilex, soon after collection or major prune, there are often multiple buds at each spot. Should I cut/rub off the extra right away or wait til later?
Below are the pictures of a few.

 

[Cajunrider]

I went ahead and pruned off all but one branch at each spot where there are multiple branches. The trees are now sparse but look good otherwise.

 

[TomB]

On hawthorns and ilex, soon after collection or major prune, there are often multiple buds at each spot. Should I cut/rub off the extra right away or wait til later?

In this scenario I would normally wait until I see the buds start extending, to make sure they are going to grow, then carefully cut off all but the one I want to keep.

 

[Cajunrider]

In this scenario I would normally wait until I see the buds start extending, to make sure they are going to grow, then carefully cut off all but the one I want to keep.

Agree.
For these trees I waited until the branches are all 12" to 18" then I nipped off the unwanted ones. The main reason for waiting this long is because I wanted the roots to grow for these collected trees. However, for trees with established roots, I wonder if I should remove the unwanted buds much sooner. The videos I saw on-line showed people pinching off the unwanted buds of hawthorns when they are only 1-2" long.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

I've had a couple hawthorns die back further than where their first new branches were.
So I'd wait until they enter their second year and then prune every unwanted part off.
Just to make sure that there's viability in the remainder.

 

[Cajunrider]

I've had a couple hawthorns die back further than where their first new branches were.
So I'd wait until they enter their second year and then prune every unwanted part off.
Just to make sure that there's viability in the remainder.

Thank you for the reminder. When I do the pruning, I always kept in the back of my mind the overall health and energy balance. I make sure that there is enough foliage left on the tree to sustain and grow. I understand that it is very important for trees that have recently collected or are in development where major pruning or chop can put a heavy demand on the tree energy reserves. In the case of the recently collected trees, I have learned the hard way in the past where my aggressive pruning caused grave stress to the collected or chopped trees.