Cherry blossom trees

[Will Billy]

I have 2 Yoshiro Cherry blossom trees in my front yard. One of them is doing fine, while the other is not doing so well (only one branch appears to be alive). I love my Sakura (cherry blossom) trees. Any advise or online resources to help bring my dying tree back to life?

[Brandy]

Hmm. There are diseases (brown rot, canker, leaf spot) that could cause that, or freezing can sometimes.

Was it exceptionally cold where you are this winter? If not, I think I would be cautious doing any pruning without sterilizing stuff between trees. Dip or spray tools with bleach solution and let dry.

Where I live in the PNW cherry trees are weird in that they like to be pruned in the early spring (before fowering) and late summer (after fruiting) instead of winter like apples and roses. I would clear out the dead limbs asap, and burn them or put them in yard waste instead of the compost. If it is a disease the best thing you can do is cut back hard into healthy wood, and keep the tree area clean of dead foliage (its own or another fruit tree's leaves for instance). There are also antifungal solutions you can spray in winter, some are fairly mild.

[Anita]

On 3/26/2021 at 5:19 PM, Will Billy said:

I have 2 Yoshiro Cherry blossom trees in my front yard. One of them is doing fine, while the other is not doing so well (only one branch appears to be alive). I love my Sakura (cherry blossom) trees. Any advise or online resources to help bring my dying tree back to life?

Sorry to hear about your dying cherry tree. ☹️🌸

At this point, it may be time to bring in a professional arborist. Diagnosing what's wrong requires examining the trunk, branches, and bark for clues. And try to remember their history. How old are the trees? When were they planted? Younger or newly planted trees are less resilient than mature or established ones. Are they planted in a sheltered spot? What else is planted around them? Do they get watered with long, deep soakings? (Not just from sprinklers.) Did the branches die off in one season? Over the course of a few years? Did branches start dying after getting pruned? 

In addition to the diseases mentioned by @Brandy, trees may also succumb to insects if they are weakened by stress or disease. And freezing, yes. For the past few seasons, we have been experienced extreme temperature swings in late winter/early spring, and this has been very hard on my trees, even the mature ones. Another culprit could be ground disturbance. Even shallow landscaping or digging around the tree can shock the roots, or expose them to drying or freezing. 

[Will Billy]

Thank yall for the advice. They are a bit older trees, after doing some further research they are Yoshiro Cherry Blossoms. Apparently they only live 30-40 years, which is quite surprisingly short. By my best estimate they are around 27 years old, given the age of the house and when they were most likely planted. They sit alone in the front yard with plenty of sun and rain here in Tennessee. They have liken growing on the bark near the base of the trees and on the lower branches. The worse one of the two had several branches removed after they have died and fallen of. I will try to find an arborist in my area. I hate to lose them, but if i do i wish to replant the same exact trees. Thank you for the advice. Here are a few pics of them compared to my neighbors beautiful healthy cherry blossom. The pic with the truck in it is the neighbors tree. The other two sad ones are mine 😓

Edited March 30, 2021 by Will Billy

[Anita]

12 hours ago, Will Billy said:

The worse one of the two had several branches removed after they have died and fallen of. I will try to find an arborist in my area. I hate to lose them, but if i do i wish to replant the same exact trees. Thank you for the advice. Here are a few pics of them compared to my neighbors beautiful healthy cherry blossom. The pic with the truck in it is the neighbors tree. The other two sad ones are mine 😓

Hmm, looking at your photos, especially the middle one, the branches do not appear to have been cut properly.

I guess if these were my trees, the first thing I would do is to get an arborist to clean up all those cuts as soon as I could. To properly prune a Yoshino Flowering Cherry (or any type of cherry, flowering or fruiting), they should cut all the branches—even the skinny ones at the top—all the way to what is called the collar. I.e., they should not leave any stubs or half-branches. If they don't prune flush to the collar, the open wound will not heal up properly. The rest of the branch may die back until it reaches the trunk. The dieback could even invade the rest of the tree. Cutting too deep into the trunk is also a problem. Properly pruned, the collar will grow a nice callous of healthy wood and bark after a few years. Especially since your trees are really struggling, it would be important to find someone who knows how to diagnose what is wrong and what to do about it. 

I am so sorry to see your poor trees having a hard time. 🌸

[Will Billy]

A big thank you to @Anita, @Brandy, and @Daniel. It may seem weird that i am so sentimental about my trees. They are so special to me for reasons i care not to dive into. Thank you again from such a wonderful forum fulled with such wonderful people. I feel blessed to know just the tiny tid bits of such a caring forum. I have found an arborist who will be out next week to help me out. Thank you guys again so much. 

[Anita]

ORD 💜 

[Will Billy]

Update on my cherry blossoms. The Arborist said that my trees were infected with bacterial cankers which i mistook for liken. She was quite surprised my tress lived as long as they have as badly infected as they were. Given the age of the trees and the damage they have incurred she recommended that i start over. She suggested to go with Akebono cherry blossoms as they do much better in my region and are more bacterial resistant than a standard Yoshino tree. It sucks to start over, as I have enjoyed them for so long. On the bright side i can watch the new trees grow right along with my kids. 

[Anita]

Bummer. I am sorry to hear this sad news. 😢

Akebono looks like a lovely tree — pink buds opening into pale pink flowers. Here is a description and photos of Akebono. And sure enough, the Yoshino description warns they are prone to disease. Gold star for your arborist! ⭐