Why is my teak growing slowly and crooked and how do I fix it?

Slow, crooked teak usually comes from one or more of a few causes. Poor or waterlogged soil holds teak back, since it needs deep, well drained land. Low quality planting stock gives uneven, weak growth, so improved clonal or good seedling material matters. Lack of early weeding and water means the young plants struggle. And no pruning or training lets the stem fork and bend. To improve things, keep the basins weed free in the early years, give water in dry spells while young, and prune side branches and remove forks to train a single straight leader for a clean bole. On genuinely waterlogged or shallow soil teak will always struggle, so that land may simply not suit teak. A straight clean bole is what fetches the high timber price later, so the training effort pays off.