Death of an Apricot? - Ask Extension
Good morning. I am wondering if my Hungarian Rose apricot tree has died. It started to leaf out this spring, then suddenly last weekend, all of the ...
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Death of an Apricot? #866851
Asked May 03, 2024, 7:54 AM EDT
Good morning. I am wondering if my Hungarian Rose apricot tree has died. It started to leaf out this spring, then suddenly last weekend, all of the leaves withered and died. I did a scratch test on a branch where there are dead leaves, and there is still green under the bark. There is a Wilson Delicious apricot planted next to it that looks fine. The Wilson Delicious is in the photo labeled "Apricot1" and is behind and to the right of the Hungarian Rose apricot. We had a couple cold nights between 10 to 14 days ago, so I am wondering if this is frost damage. I also thought it was strange that there is some growth from last year that appears to be short, spiky twigs. I have about 17 other fruit trees in my orchard, and this is the only one that appears to have issues at this time.
Washington County Maryland
Expert Response
Apricot is an early blooming, tender stone fruit that is unfortunately susceptible to late frost/freeze injury and isn't commonly grown (for long) in our area.
If the tree leafed out normally and then dried up, you can investigate a couple of things.
First off, look closely at the base and around the tree for any signs of injury- chewed areas, sunken bark cankers or other injury.
Voles, sometimes termed 'meadow mice' eat plants and chew bark/wood both above and below ground:
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/voles/
It's also possible that the tree was declining last year for some reason(s) and there was just enough food energy to push out the new growth but not sustain it.
If you weren't checking for water needs regularly that could stress it too.
As does too much mulch, which are termed "mulch volcanoes". Mulch that is too deep (should only be 2-3, 4 inches max) can smother roots of oxygen (causes slow demise over long time) and not allow water to get to the roots (stresses and kills more quickly.
You should remove excess mulch. Learn more here:
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/mulching-trees-and-shrubs/
If the emerging leaves quickly withered, it was probably due to cold weather that, for some reason, affected that tree and not the other apricots. Water the tree during dry periods and monitor it for new growth over the next month.
Christine
If the tree leafed out normally and then dried up, you can investigate a couple of things.
First off, look closely at the base and around the tree for any signs of injury- chewed areas, sunken bark cankers or other injury.
Voles, sometimes termed 'meadow mice' eat plants and chew bark/wood both above and below ground:
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/voles/
It's also possible that the tree was declining last year for some reason(s) and there was just enough food energy to push out the new growth but not sustain it.
If you weren't checking for water needs regularly that could stress it too.
As does too much mulch, which are termed "mulch volcanoes". Mulch that is too deep (should only be 2-3, 4 inches max) can smother roots of oxygen (causes slow demise over long time) and not allow water to get to the roots (stresses and kills more quickly.
You should remove excess mulch. Learn more here:
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/mulching-trees-and-shrubs/
If the emerging leaves quickly withered, it was probably due to cold weather that, for some reason, affected that tree and not the other apricots. Water the tree during dry periods and monitor it for new growth over the next month.
Christine
Hi, Christine.
Thank you very much for the response. I haven't seen any damage on the tree that may have been caused by voles. I haven't seen any tunneling under the surface either that may indicate they were at work underground. I'm very careful to plant the trees at the proper depth, and to keep the mulch back and away from the trunk. It is possible that the tree may have been declining for some reason last year, as might be suggested by those spiky stubs of last year's growth. Water shouldn't have been an issue as we had sufficient rain here the past couple of years.
Hopefully, it is just frost damage and I'll see new leaves emerge soon. One additional thing I did notice today when I was checking on it was below-the-graft shoots emerging from the trunk. So, the root system apparently isn't dead.
We'll see what happens with it. Based on what you said, it seems that in this area apricots might be better as container grown trees that can be better protected in a garage during these crazy winter to spring transitions we have around here.
Thanks again!
Jason
Good luck. I hope it can flush out new leaves.
Here is our Growing Stone Fruits page:
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/growing-stone-fruits-home-garden/
Here is our Growing Stone Fruits page:
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/growing-stone-fruits-home-garden/
