Problems with a large established cherry tree

tom.frizellshackleyTyIHggkz · February 2021

Hello all,

I'm hoping someone can help advise me on what to do with a large cherry tree we have in our garden.

My family and I moved into the house at the end of 2020 and we've inherited a well established cherry tree in part of our garden. Unfortunately, it seems to have been originally planted too close to the garden wall and it has grown with a very distinct curve. I enclose some photos below.

The tree seems to be reasonably healthy, however, there is some blistering to the bark on the trunk - either where someone has removed branches too close to the trunk or where pressure has been placed on the trunk from the weight of upper branches/growth. You can see in the photos that the tree has tried to heal itself, but not very successfully.

I would really like to help this tree so that it can thrive. I have been advised that we should cut it back hard to allow regrowth but I would prefer not to do that if possible. I was wondering about having a wooden brace built to help support the trunk? Perhaps some wooden frame to help support the tree? We probably wouldn't be able to fix anything to the garden wall (grade 2 listed) but perhaps something on the flower bed surrounding the tree (currently being cleared of broken crockery, plates and garden rubble we have inherited alongside the tree!).

Any advice at all would be greatly appreciated.

Tom

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Cambridgerose12 · February 2021

Cherry trees are not long-lived. It does not look to me as if it's in imminent danger of collapse, but what you see in the wounds is resin, and very often, if injured, they succumb to canker in middle age and then die. Personally I would let it live out its last years without messing it about, but then just look forward to planting a new one when it does pass on.

At that stage, you'd not only need to remove the old tree and as much of the root as you could manage, but in planting the new one, put it somewhat further from the wall. Your existing tree wasn't properly staked in its youth, hence why it has bowed. With any situation where there is light only from one side, a tree will try to grow towards it. So you would probably need to train it with care while young, to ensure it remained upright.

https://homeguides.sfgate.com/prop-up-newly-planted-trees-38638.html

Allotment Boy · February 2021

Is it ornamental or do you get an edible crop? Some of the older trees used to grow huge. A new one on a modern dwarf rootstock would be much easier to manage.

Lizzie27 · February 2021

I, too, think there's not much you could do now to save the tree. It does look like cancer on the trunk to me which means it might not live for much longer. You could consult a professional arborist though to see whether they advise propping up the tree to take some of the weight off. The difficulty there being is that the props could injure the roots when being hit into the ground. It looks quite a tall tree and if it could cause injury or damage if it fell in high winds, I would be inclined to have it out I'm afraid.
Difficult decision.

Problems with a large established cherry tree

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