Thanks a million Gavin, that really helpsGavinG wrote:The longer they grow in a season, the thicker they get. In the early stages, prune once a year, and only allow two or three shoots to grow - rub off the rest. More shoots = shorter, not so thick. After a few years, the trunk gets some kind of movement, so you get the idea where you want branches, so you leave just a few more. Obviously, this is for Eucs and others that bud back freely. For junis, pines and leptos that don't bud back, you need to be more tactical - let one grow long, keep a couple at its base pinched short, and then cut out the long sacrifice branch after a year, repeat the process at the next stage.
Be aware that by the time you have made two cuts to the trunk, with two resulting bends, you have pretty much defined the eventual size of the tree. If your first two cuts occur in the first 150mm of the trunk, the tree probably won't end up a metre tall - the low bends just won't be in proportion.
This of course is all just my opinion. Find out for yourself, see what works for you. And NEVER EVER prune a long stem of elm without putting half a dozen cuttings in a pot...
Best of luck,
Gavin
Am really hoping to get a few good eucs in my collection, one species that I am eager to learn more about 
I've been using stakes to twist some, and wiring others to give a bit of movement as they grow
