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Calling all gardeners for help


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Hello to all you gardening experts, I'm hoping you can help.  I planted two fruit trees, one a nectarine and a cherry, earlier this year.  I bought them from the supermarket.  I followed the instructions replanting them, however, the cherry has blossomed and now has leaves, but the nectarine hasn't done anything since we bought it.

Have we bought a duff tree?

Futher to that the cherry tree leaves look as though something has ben eating them.  I've had a look under the leaves, but have found nothing, apart from one ant.  Are ants likely to eat leaves? 

Sorry for the dumb questions, its just I'm such a novice at this gardening lark.

Many thanks

Dotty 

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Dotty, if the Cherry blossomed everything was OK up to that point. Most things can stand a certain amount of nibbling. What percentage of the leaves would you say have been guzzled?

There are some critters that will only come out at night. Slugs for instance, can easily get up a young tree. You could try a couple of yoghurt pots with beer in them buried rim deep next to the tree to find out if it's them. It could even be Deer, if your garden is not fenced,and having seen the size of hares, I would put nothing past them either..

Nectarines are susceptible to a curling of the leaves problem. A virus I think, called 'Peach Leaf Curl'. Do the leaves look normal?

If they were only planted in Spring, I wouldn't expect much from either this year.

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Thank you for the prompt reply.

I woulday about 20% of the leaves on the cherry tree have been nibbled at.  I will take a better guess atthat tomorrow, after I've taken another look.  Its wierd, because most ofthe leaves that have been nibbled, seem to have holes in the middle and not round the edges, a bit like a caterpillar hole.

The nectarine tree has no leaves, nothing.  It has very small tight buds, that look just as they did when we bought it.  Just as the cherry did.

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Hi Dotty

No leaves? That sounds odd, but you are not that far from us. I have had a few plants that have 'done their thing' very late this year.

However, my necatarine had its leaves early, then succumbed to the thing. There is something you can get for it, but this year we are just leaving it to see what happens. In the end I don't want to be spraying stuff on things, especially things that produce fruit.

With the Cherry tree, you may need a late night look. If it looks like insect bites, it probably is insect bites. Sneak up in the dark with a Torch. It's fun! Squish them!

PS I gave only been at it for 9/10 years. I got into it after my dad died (but had no fruit trees in UK, so I'm a complete novice there). I still consider myself a total beginner, but I love it.[:)]

We both have time to get good at it before we are old[:D]

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oooooohh, sounds like a job for one of my boys, they will love going out in the dark, with a torch, on a bug hunt.

Could it be ants?

Can replanted fruit trees lay dorment for a while, or can they sometimes just never take to the spot they are put in and die?

Well, going completely off topic, please don't report me Mrs off topic policewoman, I have beetroots coming up and potatoes.  One of my beetroots has a shoulder coming out of the soil by about 1/4 of an inch.  When will I know when its ready to dig up, Mrs police gardener?[:D]

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Yup. Great for children. Tell them to flick them off, or catch them with something, in case they are stinging creatures. Throw them at chickens, that's what I do.

You and I are Fruit tree novices, but I do knwo that Autumn is the best time to plant trees etc. I have got a couple of trees (not fruit) that are just 'sitting there'. They are not dead, but they are not doing much. It's a wait and see situation sometimes.

Well, going completely off topic, please don't report me Mrs off topic policewoman, I have beetroots coming up and potatoes.  One of my beetroots has a shoulder coming out of the soil by about 1/4 of an inch.  When will I know when its ready to dig up, Mrs police gardener?Big Smile [:D]


I'm going to to report sorry, I mean to say refer you to the forum members who have a clue about beetroots, Madam.  [:)]Good Luck!

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Hi Dotty,  

I should think that your nectarine has croaked, it would definitely have shown signs of life by now.

Leaves on trees get nibbled all the time and it really is nothing to worry about, it may look a bit untidy but that's nature. Cherry trees are very strong and there are no insects that will cause them serious harm.

Unless you like baby beets, wait until you can see a sizable "ball" protruding from the ground or if unsure carefully scrape the soil away from one, no further than half way down the "ball" without disturbing it until you can see the size of it. Seems very early to have mature beetroot's, normally a month or two yet depending on variety.

Chris

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Dotty

Do what gardeners call the thumb nail test   Rub the bark on a shoot near the base with your thumb nail, if there is green there under the bark its OK, if not it has gone to the great compost heap in the sky.  Many young  and mature fruit trees did not survive the drought period last summer.  It is also a fact of life that the supermarkets plants are not the best looked after whilst in their care, many Garden Centres do a one year warranty on their plants.

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Chris

Thanks for the note re the cherry tree, it looks pretty healthy apart from the nibbled leaves, just being an over cautious mother. [:)]

RE the beets, as I said there is part of the beet standing proud of the soil, should I just leave it there and continue growing it, or should the soil be mounded up to cover it.

Many thanks

Dotty

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Thanks Chris, will do as advised.

Ron, did the scrapping of the bark thing, and the reverse of the bark is a lime coloured green, where as the wood underneath is white, does this mean its still alive?  If so should I give it anything other than just water?

Many thanks chaps

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Looks like there is some life in it still Dottty as that bark would be grey and the stem brownish if it was dead.  Some plants and trees are still not in leaf yet so give it a while, it might not like the cold wind and nights we have been having recently, it might also just be a late variety. 

 Dotty is this a recent purchase?  If it is, it might need a bit more firming in and a feed to kick  start it and get the roots working.  A bit of wood ash from the fire does  not do any harm either if you have some.

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Thanks for that Ron.

I bought the tree in Feb/March, when the supermarket promos were on for fruit trees.  I planted it soon after, the only thing I can think of is with the cherry I left the roots untouched when I put it in the ground, with the nectarine, I sread them out a bit, otherwise they were both the same.

 

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After watering (or lots of rain) mulch around the base of the tree with a thick layer of grass clippings for example.  I've been doing this for the last few years and my new trees and plants are thriving despite the lack of rain.

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