Young Crab Apple Not Thriving

Hello everyone,

I planted a young crab apple tree in autumn last year - it had been in a pot for 18 months and I thought it would be better in the ground than spending another winter in a pot. Last spring it blossomed beautifully and grew good leaves during the summer. However, this spring, although it had a good number of buds, the blossom was disappointing and now the tiny leaves are turning yellow and dying. Can anyone give any advice as to what's wrong? I noticed that the soil in the bottom of the pot smelt nasty when we took it out before planting - were we too late do you think and what can we do to save the tree? thanks!