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Plum tree - can it be saved?

GillarooGillaroo Posts: 17
Hi all, I think this plum tree might have bacterial canker. It's oozing sap from a few places on the tree. Can anyone tell me if it can be saved? It's the main trunk of the tree. So if I "cut it out" I'll effectively be just cutting down the tree! 

Any thoughts on if it is canker and if it can be saved would be most welcome !








Posts

  • Silver surferSilver surfer Posts: 4,719
    With an open wound as large as that I fear your tree will not make it.
    If it were mine I would cut it down get the roots out and if at all possible burn the wood.
    Perthshire. SCOTLAND .
  • GillarooGillaroo Posts: 17
    With an open wound as large as that I fear your tree will not make it.
    If it were mine I would cut it down get the roots out and if at all possible burn the wood.
    Thank you for your opinion. I was afraid that was the solution! Would there be any disadvantages to leaving it until summer and see if it produces any fruit? 
  • I have a plum tree with a sticky sap oozing from the bark the tree is located in a south facing garden, it usually gives a good yield of fruit each year with a productive blossom. This year the tree had very little fruit and blossom. The tree is usually pruned in August to prevent silver leaf, I don't want to lose the tree as I have a lot of bees which rely on the nectar in spring time and a population of birds who sit in the tree in winter and throughout the seasons. I haven't pruned the tree due to the prolonged warm spell this year ( the tree is always fed in springtime to create a healthy crop). Is there another way to treat the tree without using chemicals ? Would welcome advise.
  • LiriodendronLiriodendron Posts: 8,328
    How long has it been oozing sap?  Is it coming from the trunk or a branch?  From just one point or many?  Does the tree otherwise look healthy?  And what variety is it?

    Oozing sap in plum trees can be caused by environmental stress - for example, irregular watering, or extreme heat or cold - or from physical damage (by a strimmer, for example) - as well as by bacterial canker.  Some plum varieties are much more susceptible to canker than others; 'Victoria' is a susceptible one.  If there are areas of sunken bark, and holes appearing in leaves, I'd suspect canker.

    If the leaves are healthy I woudn't worry about the lack of flowers and fruit, unless it becomes a regular occurrence.   Birds such as bullfinches eat fruit buds in my garden, so that this year I had almost no blossom (and consequently hardly any fruit) from my trees.
    Since 2019 I've lived in east Clare, in the west of Ireland.
  • The tree leaves are healthy apart from the holes in some (I suspect caterpillar's), we did have a wet winter and the bark is a wee bit sunken but it's not too bad. We did have prolonged spells of cold weather in west of Scotland. Then the prolonged drought some leaves dying off because of transpiration. I recently began to trim the tree after the weather improved. Hopefully the tree will recover in time for next spring. Thanks for your post.
  • Sap is oozing from bark and has been doing this since we had prolonged cold winds in late spring and early summer.
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