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Sprouts developing from topped or damaged trees
Sprouts
that develop following a storm help the tree recover. It is important to leave
these intact for a number of years to allow the tree to build energy reserves
that were removed with the foliage and branches. Once the growth rate on sprouts
begins to slow and sprouts take on a more normal form, the tree has recovered
sufficiently to begin developing structure in
the tree. This is accomplished by removing some sprouts, reducing the length
of some sprouts, and leaving some sprouts intact.