I had my cherry tree for 28 years now and throughout the years it has been very healthy, strong and vibrant. Last spring, we cut alot of the branches off because the branches very getting very long and we were afraid the strong winds would cause the branches to damage the house. I am thinking that we probably cut too much of the tree off. This summer, the leaves started turning brown in July and it did not bear any cherries. There are barely any leaves left on it now (september). The trunk's skin is shedding and right in the middle of the trunk, it seems like it is cracking. Is my tree dying or can I still save my tree? How can I save it? I would really hate to see it die. If it is going to die, will the whole tree eventually snap? This may become a hazard since it is planted right beside my house in close approximity. Will it be necessary to chop the whole tree down if this is the case? What should I do with my cherry tree? Jeanne
Well, the easy answer first. Dead trees don't remain upright forever so yes, if it does die, it will fall down (eventually). Branches will drop first and then the whole tree. You don't really want to leave a dead tree in a maintained landscape area? Now for the harder part. Without seeing a photo, I am making assumptions here but I suspect you cut branches down to stubs of various lengths. If this is true, you in fact removed many of the flower buds that had already 'set' for spring, weakened the tree greatly by removing many leaf buds, and opened the tree up to rot, fungal, and insect attacks. The tree is trying to recover by sprouting from dormant buds on the mature branches but these unions are inherently weak and the new branches will eventually pose a greater hazard than the old ones (by suddenly breaking off). At this point, I would hire a qualified arborist to evaluate the tree and provide recommendations & a path forward. Please consider using an arborist in the future prior to starting an major pruning, it will save you lots grief and money over the long term.
