Split Cherry Trees

[irishmut]

We've had a harsh winter here in New England, I'm afraid it's been a little too rough on my cherry trees. I nurtured these trees from seedlings and they are now over 30 feet tall. My Kwanzan cherry trees stretch from the ground to about 5' where the crotch of the trees carry the branches upward. Over the winter, three of my trees have developed a vertical crack from the crotch down to a few inches from the ground on the South side of the trees. This crack is about 1/8" wide and 1/4" to 1/2" deep. Is this a threat
to these trees ? Is there something I should do ?

 

[rbtree]

You could try to do some repairs yourself, better would be to find an arborist.

I'd support the broken area from below with braces and/or from above with tie material. As well, the split part should be able to be pulled together with screws.

some pruning to reduce weight on the weakened limbs/leaders would be appropriate, most likely.

 

[ROLLACOSTA]

your cherry trees are doomed im afraid..to late to try bracing ....as the splits now there, fungi and there friends will soon invade

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

I am much less pesimistic than ROLLACOSTA.
It is very commmon for trees to devevop cracks. For a proffesional arborist the fix is quite simple. It usually involves putting a metal cable or synthetic rope across the top of the tree to hold the two halves together. This will be located about two thirds of the way from the crack to the top of the tree. In some cases, a through bolt is added right at the crack to hold the crack closed.

What ROLLACOSTA may not know is that trees add a layer of new wood all over the outside of the tree each year. That's why you see rings in wood.
Once the crack is stabilzed, new wood will form over the crack and soon you won't even be able to see it. Even the bolt used to hold the crack together will be covered with new layers of wood.
The tree will put down a layer of chemicals that help prevent wood decay fungi and other orginisms from moving into the new wood. This is called compartmentilizing and the hole concept is known as CODIT (compartmentalization of decay in trees). A web search will show many articles on the subject.

 

[ROLLACOSTA]

mike i still do not think splits this long and that wide will ever codit and re- fuse /graft... i bet a diease will move in a funghi or kind of canker..i think by bolting etc you would realy be putting off the inevitable

how wide a crack do you think new wood would be able too bridge..id love too be wrong

 

[Guy Meilleur]

Originally posted by Mike Maas
I am much less pesimistic than ROLLACOSTA.

Me too. How deep is the split? Is it just a frost crack in the bark, or is the wood cracked? Either way, a little care may preclude removal.

If you post a picture, MM offers free online consultation, and others may chime in. This can be useful, but nothing is better than having an arborist on site to show you how you can manage all your trees.

 

[Guy Meilleur]

woops

just read the whole thing. i/2" is minor. If it's on the south side, it sounds like just a frost crack.

Yes decay happens but it is not an inevitable killer. Trees lcan live with a little rot for a long time.

 

[irishmut]

I want to thank all of you for your replies. It gives me great encouragement that there may be a solution to this problem. I hate to lose trees I spent so much time getting to grow just right. I promise to take some digital photos so you all can see, and hopefully provide more in-depth analysis (as soon as the weather permits of course).

 

[irishmut]

To all interested parties, photos of my cherry trees are available at the following link: http://www.yorkphoto.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=11732832/t_=5663602

Thank you.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

The site is password protected.

 

[irishmut]

Sorry about that...

Try this one...


http://www.yorkphoto.com/share/p=628121081783908847/l=25849717/cobrandOid=1002

 

[Guy Meilleur]

It looks like that bark crack is smaller than you earlier described. Search "frost crack" and you'll see there is no worry or treatment needed.

Inviting an arborist onsite once a year can help you manage your trees better than the internet can.

 

[irishmut]

Thanks for looking !