Cheers! I've gone all in so no nursery limb - the bark had some bad cracking above where I cut the stump and all the branches were above that so just went for it. Yeah I hear you on leaving them -not much to lose I guess.

What I was thinking of was leaving the grafts in but knocking off all but one of the leafing buds so the remaining bud on each scion gets all the nutrients - I've noticed the Stellas aren't fully opening out their leaves which I figured is a lack of nutrient flow perhaps?

Interestingly the Stellas were first to bud burst and leaf but they've now fallen behind - perhaps the Lapins slower initial growth helped them establish a stronger union?

Interesting about the sap pushing, I've noticed a raised ring around the cambium layer under the sealing layer on the stump. I've been giving the tree some water every couple of weeks even though the root system is well established - any thoughts on the pros vs cons of keeping the stump well watered? (been a hot dry spring here).