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Rehabilitating a possibly sick Cherry tree #872329

Asked June 09, 2024, 9:02 PM EDT

Dear Sir or Madam, We bought our house in early winter of 2023 along with two trees in the backyard that we discovered are tart cherry trees. We don't know how old these trees are and the previous owners didn't do much to take care of them. Last summer they bore fruit, but we only harvested a small portion, and let the birds eat the rest. This spring, the trees have just finished flowering and are starting to fruit. As we are working on developing our garden, we noticed that one of the cherry trees may be sick. As you'll see from the pictures, many of the lower branches are bare and have neither leaves nor blossoms. On the upper branches, some of the blossoms and leaves are brown, and some of the last year's fruit are brown and desiccated but still hanging on. What steps do you recommend taking to get this tree into better shape? Thank you in advance for your help.

St. Louis County Minnesota

Expert Response

Thank you for writing.
I would need close ups of some branches to know for sure but you may have scale. https://hortsense.cahnrs.wsu.edu/fact-sheet/ornamental-cherry-scales/  See the white bumps on a selection of your photo. 

The tree has been neglected, pruning in winter would help remove dead wood but I have a feeling the tree is seriously ill with old age (dwarf tarts cherries last about 15 years) or some disease in the trunk. chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://extension.unl.edu/statewide/buffalo/Heart%20Rot%20in%20Trees%20November%2015%202014.pdf

A close up of the base of the tree where it enters the ground might be helpful.

This would also be a good time to get the opinion of an arborist. 
https://extension.umn.edu/planting-and-growing-guides/how-hire-tree-care-professional

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