I took a course at an arboretum and it was taught by a certified arborist and his firm and they said that staking a tree is probably the worst thing to do to a tree. Does this mean I would not stake the tree at all? No, I just might, given the right circumstances.
A tree needs the wind to blow the branches which in turn strengthens the roots. So, if the wind was blowing say east to west, or pushing the tree towards the west, the roots pointing east would gain strength, and vice versa.
I would say that you should do some more research on it.
But Ken_adrian brought up a good point on the high winds and soil conditions. And in this case, I would stake it for a year as well, but loosely, give it a little play and use an old cut-up garden hose over the wires so the wires do not cut into the trunk.
Is it far away from anything that if it did fall, nothing would be harmed?
Maybe some experts will key in.
