Thread: Rowan tree
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Old 15-08-2007, 11:27 AM posted to uk.rec.gardening
Davy Davy is offline
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First recorded activity by GardenBanter: Jul 2006
Posts: 75
Default Rowan tree

Stewart,

I think you have it exactly. My rowan is in shallow top soil over solid
clay; in fact the planting hole made a depression in the clay which probably
then acts as a sump.
So the roots probably got waterlogged and died during the long period of
rain all through recent months, and then in the two weeks of hot weather
around the beginning of August the tree had insufficient roots to cope.
So it appears to have gone into an early autumn shutdown but hopefully is
now regrowing its roots. I assume that the roots can withstand waterlogging
during the winter dormant period.
So hopefully will burst into leaf again next Spring. But it seems that the
tree is not in an ideal location so will always have future problems which
can only get worse as the canopy gets bigger? So maybe better to replace it
with something that can tolerate those conditions - such as a birch?

Davy

"Stewart Robert Hinsley" wrote in message
...
In message , Mary
writes
The leaves of my young rowan tree have gone brown withered and died.

This
has only happened in the last few weeks.
Would anyone know why this may have happened, and what are the chances of
tree recovering next year.

Our young ornamental cherry is started to go the same way.

Thanks
Mary


What can happen is that waterlogging of the soil kills the roots, and
the foliage slowly dies off due to a lack of water being provided. (This
happens faster when the weather warms up and the sun comes out, because
the rate of water loss from the foliage increases.)

(I've lost several perennials, and I suspect shrubs as well, this year
from that cause, and the same happened with the downpours of, IIRC,
August 2003.)

If the plant has sufficient reserves it can produce new roots, and these
will support the production of new foliage, probably next year.
--
Stewart Robert Hinsley