I know the conventional wisdom regarding transplanting is that pruning
should be done to balance leaves with what is left of the roots. I
have done a little thinking in these regards and am wondering on
several fronts...If the root that supports a specific leaf are
removed, what good is done by removing the leaf? I know that it will
wilt and be lost, but might pruning do more harm? If the tree is no
longer able to support the leaf, then how can its wilting damage the
tree? Is the tree able to cross wire itself and does it attempt to
support the leaf through some other capillary system? If that is the
case, then I could see that transpiration through excess leaves may
harm a tree degraded by transplantation, but to me, a wilting leave
can do no harm, because it means that the tree has ceased providing it
with turgidity. Perhaps a tree is best able to assess its abitility to
support what is left after tranplantation and be left on its own to
die back to its own limits, the dead leaves at least being able to
provide a little shade to what is left. Perhaps by leaving it alone,
there might be more to gain than to expose more living tissue to
damage by pruning. Maybe I don't understand enough about tree
physiology, but after collecting what looks to be about a 2 year old
Liriodendron from a precarious situation and watching it wilt (it
shows signs of recovering) it got me wondering. What are others
thoughts?

Bill Wingstedt