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What's wrong with my plum tree?
SarSpud
Posts: 46
Hi, the base of this plum tree doesn't look very healthy. Any idea what's causing this?
0
Posts
Yes the top half looks healthy and has lots of buds. Do you think it will survive? I've spent 2 years training it as a fan.
It occasionally happens with dwarfing rootstock. The important thing is to keep the tree well fed and watered and not to let the top become too large for the rootstock, or the tree will fail. Exactly as Pansyface has said, little you can do bar tend it carefully. In the summer (when plums and cherries can be pruned), it may be prudent to remove some of the branches, perhaps some of the most vigorous new growth and any old non-fruiting stems that are weak, just to keep the amount of top growth to a controlled level. That way there won't be a strain on the rootstock which is supplying the top. As a fan-trained tree I presume it's staked/supported. That's important, otherwise wind could rock the tree and further damage the stem.
H-C