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plant pauper
Posts: 6,904
in Plants
Has anyone any idea what this might have been?
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plant pauper
Posts: 6,904
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Cherry of some type, possibly.
Thanks Bob. I've just uncovered it from the 8 ft brambles and I don't think it has flowered. I've only been here 2 years and I'm beating my way through the wilderness slowly but surely. If it's cherry I'll just chop it down. I thought it might be a "proper" fruit tree. There is a giant flowering cherry on further back but this is in a wee bit all by itself.
Flowering cherries are usually grafted on our native Wild cherry which is a notorious sucker producer.
It doesn't look like a sucker. Would they go 40ft?
I would like someone to say it might be an apple....anyone???
Prune it in the winter and let it do its thing next spring. I love surprises!
I'll have to do something with it. The poor thing is in a right state after being buried for dear knows how long. I'm not sure it would come under the heading of pruning but it will be "seen to". Hopefully that'll cheer it up.
If it is a cherry, now (summer) is a good time to prune it. Winter pruning risks silver leaf disease.
You never know, it might be an eating cherry (although all cherries are edible) - those need really good light and feeding to crop so might respond to you uncovering it from all those brambles.
It has already.
Last year I thought it was dead but I left it because it had a nest in it. This year I've cleared a bit more of the surrounding area and cut down a dead tree and more brambles and it now has recognisable tree parts. Branches, leaves, that kind of thing. It really is a sorry state. I'm not sure but there might be another one further over but I can't get near enough to see if it's a separate tree.
It's a jungle out there!
How should I go about it? I'll cut off all there bare bits of stick and clean up the mossy manky bits. What then? It only has about three branches with leaves on.
Update:- I've been out for another look. It seems that the bit I've been looking at is the only upright bit left. The "other tree" that I thought was there is the fallen over main part of the original. I took some more pictures but they make no sense. They're a big tangle of brambles and c**p.
Last edited: 03 July 2016 09:43:13
I'd remove the fallen over bit completely - saw it off at the main trunk and just keep the upright bit. Also remove any obviously dead branches by cutting back in to live wood well below the damage and just above an outward-facing bud or sideshoot. Remove any crossing branches. Then stand back and take a 'trip' (no choice with brambles!) around the tree and see if it's a pleasing open shape. If not, cut off a bit more. It will likely grow vigorously after heavy pruning so nip out any really fast-growing upright shoots which appear to be reaching for the sky. If not happy with the results you can always just get rid as you originally mentioned.
I'll give that a rattle thanks Bob. It already has those "reach for the sky" bits. I'm not sure about walking around it though. I'll take my "binolookers" and go down tother end!
I may be some time!
Once my strimmer/brushcutter comes home from hospital I'll see what I can clear from around the base and give it a good clean up. It's all covered in moss/lichen/goop.