We have a mature sweet cherry tree (Stella, sold as self-pollinating)
that has produced very well for quite a few years. This year we had a
warm and very wet spring. We're in zone 5/6, very near lake Erie
which moderates the weather. The tree set its usual abundant crop
but just as they started to turn, a mold started developing on the
fruits, and the whole crop shriveled up. My concern is what I should
to to protect the tree now that this has happened. The leaves seem
healthy, and I don't find an abnormal amount of insects. Since it is
a full sized tree, and my climbing days are over, I have not kept it
as pruned as I do my dwarf tree, so I think my fall project will be to
do a drastic pruning and try to get more breeze into the tree for next
year. Is there anything else I can do for it?

In , on 06/17/04
at 04:13 PM, William Brown said:

We have a mature sweet cherry tree (Stella, sold as self-pollinating)
that has produced very well for quite a few years. This year we had a
warm and very wet spring. We're in zone 5/6, very near lake Erie which
moderates the weather. The tree set its usual abundant crop but just as
they started to turn, a mold started developing on the fruits, and the
whole crop shriveled up. My concern is what I should to to protect the
tree now that this has happened. The leaves seem healthy, and I don't
find an abnormal amount of insects. Since it is a full sized tree, and
my climbing days are over, I have not kept it as pruned as I do my dwarf
tree, so I think my fall project will be to do a drastic pruning and try
to get more breeze into the tree for next year. Is there anything else I
can do for it?

Sounds like brown rot. Do a web search, and you'll find sites telling you
how to deal with it (what and when to spray.) Good luck.


Alan

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As far as the climbing thing, get yourself an extension pruner. You can cut
branches as high as 12-15 foot reach with one of those, and if it has a saw on
the end, you can do some pretty big branches.

Here is a Tree Fruit Pest Problem Solver
http://paipm.cas.psu.edu/ProblemSolv...tProblSolv.htm

On this one, scroll down to cherry and this should help you keep track of
future problems, too
http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/pp/ext.../disindx.shtml

I hope they help.
http://www.squarefootslo.com is my site on Square Foot Gardening, but you can
find some general gardening and plant info there.

In , on 06/17/04
at 04:13 PM, William Brown said:

We have a mature sweet cherry tree (Stella, sold as self-pollinating)
that has produced very well for quite a few years. This year we had a
warm and very wet spring. We're in zone 5/6, very near lake Erie which
moderates the weather. The tree set its usual abundant crop but just as
they started to turn, a mold started developing on the fruits, and the
whole crop shriveled up. My concern is what I should to to protect the
tree now that this has happened. The leaves seem healthy, and I don't
find an abnormal amount of insects. Since it is a full sized tree, and
my climbing days are over, I have not kept it as pruned as I do my dwarf
tree, so I think my fall project will be to do a drastic pruning and try
to get more breeze into the tree for next year. Is there anything else I
can do for it?

Sounds like brown rot. Do a web search, and you'll find sites telling you
how to deal with it (what and when to spray.) Good luck.


Alan

GC
Certified Square Foot Gardening Instructor
http://www.squarefootslo.com
Learn to be a freelance web designer http://www.howtofreelance.com

Thanks for the information. The pictures at the web sites confirm
that it is brown rot.

As for climbing, this is a very large fruit tree, easily 25 or 30 feet
tall, so I'm going to try and remove all the residue of the infection
using a ladder.