Tree Following: lilac tree still bursting at the seams

I don't think we can expect a particularly startling advance on last month's sprouts. They're bigger, and the one at the top on the sunniest side is the longest. However, all are continuing to grow and, unexpectedly (for me, anyway), new buds are still breaking through. What, I wonder will be the best way to deal with them all? I think a judicious bit of pruning will be called for eventually.

   

This is part of Lucy Corrander's Tree Following meme at Loose and Leafy. Visit to see how other trees are progressing around the world.

Comments

[Lucy Corrander]

These extra leaves/branches emerging from the old trunk are very beautiful and exciting. Wonderful sense of new life. But I imagine it will end up looking a bit odd - splayed bush rather than tree shaped. Will you leave it to grow or will it have to come out some time?

[Helen]

Yes, I can see that this is becoming a shrub but that's not necessarily a disaster. If we can leave it in, I think we will. The alternative would be to take one of the lower shoots and encourage a trunk to form, I guess, but I fear that would be rather unstable.