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Whats happening to my tree

TreePrettyTreePretty Posts: 24
in Problem solving
We have what I think is an ornamental cherry - not sure exactly - doesn't fruit but has the most stunning pink and white blossom.

Most of the leaves have gone brown after blossoming - its never done that before...any ideas what might be wrong? It looks almost frost damaged 😕 


Posts

  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    Has it been getting enough water throughout the spring? There hasn't been much rain and it looks as if the roots might be in a raised bed, which will be drier and more constricting than in the ground. Another possibility is if there's been damage to the bark on the trunk.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • TreePrettyTreePretty Posts: 24
    Its not in a raised bed - there is a shallow raised ceg bed next to it but the tree is in the ground so I assume its been getting enough water - the ground slopes gently away and it is near the bottom of the slope so will have been getting water run off too.

    Can't see any damage to the bark - or at least any new damage that hasn't been there for years  :/
  • Slow-wormSlow-worm Posts: 1,630
    It looks more wilted than dry??
    Any sign of leaf infestation?
    Is there a walnut tree anywhere nearby?
  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    edited May 2022
    I know Walnut trees can inhibit growth of some plants, but they wouldn't suddenly kill a mature tree, that had previously thrived.
    I think drought is the most likely cause.
    Also ornamental Cherries are quite short lived.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    edited May 2022
    It looks as if a lot of the surface area near your tree is covered by various structures, beds etc. which will prevent much rain getting right down beneath the surface,  where your tree’s roots should be. Coupled with this we have had very little rainfall this spring. 

    It might be worth digging a hole a couple of feet deep in the area somewhere near your tree and see if it really is nice and damp down near root level. 

    We were doing some planting at the weekend and while the top inch or so of the border was really moist, a trowel’s depth lower down it was dry as dust.  



    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    Could the drainage have been impacted there somehow so there’s been a pooling of water or a leak underground? If not drought it could be drowning. Water is usually at the root of most problems. It takes a while for adverse conditions to filter through and affect trees, so it’s possible any problem started last year or even the one before but it’s only becoming evident now.
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • TreePrettyTreePretty Posts: 24
    @Slow-worm - no leaf infestation or walnuts

    @Dovefromabove - its a bad angle - its in a corner by a wall but the other way is quite a big area with raised beds and gravel. There is weed supresser down but it is breathable and let's through water.

    @Nollie - you may be onto something there...during summer 2020 we had a pipe burst...the garden further up flooded - although the water didn't seem to be anywhere near the tree it is very likely there was a lot of water under the surface....but the tree was fine last year...could it really have taken that long?
  • TreePrettyTreePretty Posts: 24
    edited May 2022
    @Dovefromabove - this is the area from a different angle - taken a couple of years ago but it hasn't changed much - you can just see the tree in the corner by the terracotta pot 
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    It could have done, trees take a long time to decline. It also depends on your soil, if it’s free draining it would have been ok after a flood but if it’s rocky or heavy clay then that might have been more problematic. The only other thing I can think of is verticillium wilt, but I don’t even know if cherry trees get that! 
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • Slow-wormSlow-worm Posts: 1,630
    punkdoc said:
    I know Walnut trees can inhibit growth of some plants, but they wouldn't suddenly kill a mature tree, that had previously thrived.
    I think drought is the most likely cause.
    Also ornamental Cherries are quite short lived.
    It's not that punkdoc, walnuts (and others I forget) have a toxin in the roots - I had a walnut tree appear a few years ago, when it was about 5ft tall, a couple of my previously very healthy plants near it went yellow and bits were dying off - but they were still growing each year. I couldn't work it out until I discovered that fact - I didn't even know trees could do that!

    Anyway, it was something to throw into the pot, but the consensus seems to be drought, which is logical. 
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