new damson tree: is it dead?

lobbyludd

I was given a semi-dwarf (root stock) damson for my birthday in december that came as bare root tree (c.1.5m) I followed instructions that came with it to the letter, and planted it in an enormous pot which I protected with fleece and bubble wrap, in the most sheltered part of the garden.

within 2 weeks it snowed, and the temperatures plummeted for an extended period of time. I'm not very hopeful to be honest, but all of the established plants in smaller non protected pots (including a twisted hazel of similar size, but established for years) have survived.

are damsons generally early or late developing their leaves? (the dormant leaf buds appear intact, and nothing is rotting but on the whole it seems lifeless), is there anything I can do now as the weather (hopefully) warms up, to help the poor thing?

Fruit trees are a new thing for me, and whilst a lovely present, it was probably the wrong time of year to give it!

lottiegirl

some one more informed will come long soon.
But bare root trees are meant to be supplied /planted November through to March, so it was the perfect time.
You say the dormant leaf buds appear intact , so patience is required , I think things have stalled for a bit /a bit delayed.Mother nature knows what she is doing. I think you will start to notice leaves in the next 2 - 3 weeks.
I am sure it will be lovely and a good present.

lobbyludd

thank you for re-assuring me.

pesky patience I'll leave it alone then, hopeful that it's just sleeping a bit longer and concentrate on enjoying the spring bulbs as they come through instead of closely peering at the leaf buds every morning!

Mojisola

lobbyludd wrote: »

are damsons generally early or late developing their leaves? (the dormant leaf buds appear intact, and nothing is rotting but on the whole it seems lifeless), is there anything I can do now as the weather (hopefully) warms up, to help the poor thing?

Don't try to force it - if you do, the fresh growth could get damaged by cold weather or strong winds.

If you're really anxious about it, scrape a tiny (couple of mm) piece of bark away with your thumbnail - if it's green under the bark the tree is alive and waiting patiently for Spring.

DaftyDuck

I have a damson - not on dwarfing rootstock - and there is no sign of life in the buds yet. It was newly planted this winter, similar time to yours. There's a golden gage on one side, and that is showing some bud, and there's an apricot (that is dwarfing) on the other side, and that's in full flower! {I am in Kent, in a walled garden, which helps!}

I'm not worried ... and won't be for months to come. I had a new dwarf nectarine last year, and that did nothing until very late (seriously thought it was dead... must have been June with no sign}.... however, it shot out in summer, albeit to a very funny shape, and is so very much alive that it has failed to lose all its leaves this winter!

Trees are eccentric, made the more so by grafting onto something foreign {how weird would I act, joined with a giraffe's hindquarters???}, and they seem to be misbehaving more with the odd weather over the last couple of years. You could, indeed, scrape a bit for curiosity, and I have done so myself. However, this will damage the tree, even if in the smallest way, and it tells you that that bit is alive now, not that it will still be alive and DO something in a month or two.

Patience, if possible, is always a virtue. But, it isn't always possible...;)

Edit: mine is variety "Farleigh", apparently.

Funky_Bold_Ribena

DaftyDuck wrote: »

Trees are eccentric, made the more so by grafting onto something foreign {how weird would I act, joined with a giraffe's hindquarters???},

When grafting, the root stock needs to be of the same family as the top or 'new' grated scions otherwise it won't grow. So you can graft apple or pear onto quince as it's the same family, but not onto plum or damson. So they aren't that foreign at all.

lobbyludd

thanks Daffy,
I've decided not to scrape it - you're right I need to leave it alone (south Wales so we're probably a couple of weeks behind you season-wise)

I'll trust in mother nature....

sobie

lobbyludd wrote: »

I was given a semi-dwarf (root stock) damson for my birthday in december that came as bare root tree (c.1.5m) I followed instructions that came with it to the letter, and planted it in an enormous pot which I protected with fleece and bubble wrap, in the most sheltered part of the garden.

Did you wrap the tree in bubble wrap or just the pot?

Enormous pot? only ever pot something into 2-3 inches more than the original pot size/ root stock. Roots will die off in too much damp soil. Then pot up as the roots grow.

lobbyludd

thanks sobie, I wrapped the pot in bubble wrap and fleece. I figured damsons are hardy in the UK and I only wanted to protect the roots from freezing until it became established and could withstand normal temp fluctuations.

It was a bare-root plant that had previously been grown in the ground for 2 years, so a fair size root "ball", wasn't a case of planting it in the next size up pot, and I used the size of pot recommended by the supplier. The pot has good drainage so shouldn't get waterlogged (certainly no more than planting it directly in my tiny wet welsh garden would do).

But fingers crossed, I should have come on here before planting it out!

sobie

lobbyludd wrote: »

thanks sobie, I wrapped the pot in bubble wrap and fleece. I figured damsons are hardy in the UK and I only wanted to protect the roots from freezing until it became established and could withstand normal temp fluctuations.

It was a bare-root plant that had previously been grown in the ground for 2 years, so a fair size root "ball", wasn't a case of planting it in the next size up pot, and I used the size of pot recommended by the supplier. The pot has good drainage so shouldn't get waterlogged (certainly no more than planting it directly in my tiny wet welsh garden would do).

But fingers crossed, I should have come on here before planting it out!

Ah that's really good. You should be fine then, unless theirs been a grafting fault but way too early to worry about that.

We often get people asking why a plant has died "when I wrapped it in bubble wrap"

dogstarheaven

got gifted a wild plum tree from someone's orchard last winter and i too, was wondering if it'll ever come into leaf in spring nd it didn't look like it would but 6 months later it did, and now it's covered with fat buds ready to hopefully, flower for me soon!!