How long will my cherry tree look dead?

[Moopmoop]

I bought a cherry tree 'Stella' last year, maybe about August, it looked dead the day I bought it and it still looks dead now. How long should it take for it to come to life, will it be in the spring? I ask because my local poundstretcher is selling them again, this time for £5.99. I would like another one but I'm not sure if the one I've got is a dud or just waiting for nicer weather to come to life. Any suggestions please.

[veggiechicken]

Have you tried the bend a twig test yet? If it snaps its dead! Also scrape away a bit of bark, if its green you have a chance! It'll be a couple of months before it buds anyway - mine are truly dormant.
Just one more thing - how can a poundstretcher sell something for £5.99

[Moopmoop]

It hasn't got any twigs on it, just thick branches. I'll do the scrape test on mine at home, best not get caught doing that to the one in the shop though.

Poundstretcher sells lot of thins that aren't a £, they're stretching £1 to make £6?

[VirginVegGrower]

The Aldi or Lidl ones are very often a good buy. Maybe wait for those to come in and sometimes Morrisons have the Stella cherry. What did the root system look like on it?

[rustylady]

I bought a cherry tree 'Stella' last year, maybe about August, it looked dead the day I bought it and it still looks dead now.

If it didn't produce any leaves last year after planting in August then it's a fair bet it's dead.

[VirginVegGrower]

If it didn't produce any leaves last year after planting in August then it's a fair bet it's dead.

Now why didn't I think of that?

[Moopmoop]

The Aldi or Lidl ones are very often a good buy. Maybe wait for those to come in and sometimes Morrisons have the Stella cherry. What did the root system look like on it?

I don't know how to describe what the roots looked like, just how I imagined they were meant to look. What should they have looked like?

[Nicos]

There should be some pale - ie white/cream/yellow fine roots

[FB.]

If it didn't produce any leaves last year after planting in August then it's a fair bet it's dead.

Yes, it's probably dead. Bare-root plants which have been in cold store can sometimes have delayed leaf-out, but it's very rare for the delay to be more than a few months.

August is not a time to be buying bare-root fruit trees; the season ends in April, so it probably died and then got sold as clearance.

Only buy leafed-out specimens during the growing season. Don't buy bare-root after about March-April; if the reputable online nurseries aren't supplying bare root trees, then that type of tree is out of season.

[Nicos]

Has it got buds like this???

http://lisahaschickens.files.wordpre...frosty-014.jpg

If so- gently pick one slightly open. That'll give you an idea if it's dead or not. Dead will be bone dry.

If it's not got any of those I would suspect it is dead. ( bark scratch is the best test though! )

[Moopmoop]

Thanks, last time I had a look there was no buds on it but I'll have another look. I'll still do the bark scratch test though.

[veggiechicken]

I've just checked my Stella and there are buds, but I didn't spot any clusters of buds. The branches are a reddish brown.

[orangepippin]

As FB says, August is not a good time to be planting fruit trees, in fact May-August are best avoided because trees are growing during that period and will not be happy with the disruption of transplanting. Also stock sold during this period will be old leftovers from the preceding winter.

We increasingly live in a society where almost anything can be ordered before 9pm and delivered the next day ... but Mother Nature does not agree and fruit trees are natural products and still operate on an annual basis! It is therefore best to buy and plant your fruit trees between September and March.

[FB.]

As FB says, August is not a good time to be planting fruit trees, in fact May-August are best avoided because trees are growing during that period and will not be happy with the disruption of transplanting. Also stock sold during this period will be old leftovers from the preceding winter.

We increasingly live in a society where almost anything can be ordered before 9pm and delivered the next day ... but Mother Nature does not agree and fruit trees are natural products and still operate on an annual basis! It is therefore best to buy and plant your fruit trees between September and March.

Having re-read my earlier comment, I should have said that leafed-out stock is the best to buy in summer - this almost always being container grown.
But container grown can also have issues - many end up with pot-bound, deformed, circling roots due to the pot restricting their outward growth. As a result, a plant which has been containerised for too long may take a long time to establish because the roots carry on growing in circles (often reluctant to leave the fertile compost around the roots) rather than outwards.

On the other hand, bare root "maiden whip" stock from some nurseries has such a tiny root system that it requires intensive care for a couple of seasons to help it establish in the same way as a pot-bound containerised plant.

The ideal is a one-year, bare-root maiden whip from a reputable nursery - preferably one which people recommend from personal experience of the quality of the plants sold.
Maiden whips are just a stick, but if it has a well-grown root system (which they should do, if from a reputable nursery) then they establish quickly and will soon overtake a container-grown plant, as long as the rootstock has been well-matched to the quality of the soil and the availability of water during the summer.

[binley100]

I'll send Jake round , if its dead he'll pull it out (he did with mine ) looked at my replacement one t'other day and it has loads of buds on it ....In the shop with a fingernail , surreptitious testing of bark is recommended especially in the cheapy shops . But you didn't hear that from me