Looking for some advise on this Bald Cypress that I saved. We had several delivered to a job site to plant as part of a landscape project and this one got run over by a bobcat. It trashed the top and made it unsaleable. I chopped the damaged area on June 21 and it has taken off in the course of 3a month or so. My plan is the let it grow out and choose a leader . The trunk is smooth, straight and generally doesn't have a lot of character, but a free plant is a free plant. Would you guys consider the trunk chop an event that would put the tree under stress next year or would it be acceptable to open it up and do a bit of root work in the spring? I am perfectly content to wait until the time is right. I visit the site regularly and have taken the advise from many of you to learn how a plant grows before any drastic work is done.