8 yr old Northern Catalpa broke in half due to storm-will it regrow top?

Question

Tree was about 15 ft tall. It has sentimental value as my mom who passed gave it to us and helped us plant it. Will it ever look like a normal tree? thanks

Answer 1

From my own experience, a new leader will emerge, but you may need to prune back some other branches to encourage the shape you desire. I would recommend pruning back to the main trunk, instead of tipping the branches, which typically stimulate more branching from the pruned branch.

Answer 2

Catalpa will readily regrow.

Catalpa will give you new growth willingly. It's up to you to prune for the shape you want. Right now, cut the bruised stub cleanly for aesthetics and watch for new growth where you want it.

Remove growth where you don't, because your tree will be bursting with energy to rebuild its chlorophyll-capturing leaf surface.

Answer 3

Observation: We lost half a peach tree once, no idea why it broke. If you were to look at it today it would take close inspection to find the places branches snapped, the tree looks normal. (Three separate breaks, I assume the shock of one breaking triggered the others.)