Looks like you're at about the same stage as we are, in western Washington state... we got a late start, due to a cold spring.
We make all our own garden stakes, too. We typically top trim some of the trees too close to the house, and after a couple of years or three, the new shoots offer perfectly straight stakes... and the tree tops are ready to be cut back again. No waste!
That sounds like a good way to do it! Thanks for commenting.