How do I get rid of those little "wanna be branches" that come out of the bottom of trees? The maple where I want to put my new flower bed has lots of them. I cut some off of another tree last year and they came back with a vengance.

I think you are talking about the sprouts thac come up in the ground around the tree in the area of the root mass. If this is so I dont think you will be able to prevent them from sprouting since they are sprouts from the entire root system. Some Maples are known for this problem.

Oh yes. Aren't they called "water shoots" or something? You may have to see if you can get that whole root out before planting anything more in that area. If you can't, I've heard that they may eventually get discouraged if you keep hacking at them for a couple of years.