Girdled Cherry Tree

wisgardener13 · Tue Jun 01, 2021 11:17 pm

I have a bing cherry tree that was coming into its’ third year this spring. I also have a montmorecy that has already blossomed and has green cherries starting. However, the Bing has yet to have its’ buds break. I was confused by this as the bids are soft and if I break one open I do find green color. All along, I had noticed a ‘ring’ around the trunk that I had overlooked.
However, I have since learned that this is ‘girdling’ which was likely from a deer. I have since done a small ‘scratch test’ above and below the girdle. In both locations I still see a green cambium. This makes me feel optimistic but it is over a month late for bud break. Has anyone dealt with this before? Should I be concerned or should I still just be patient given the branches are still flexible and the buds seem healthy?

JONA · Thu Jun 03, 2021 3:42 am

Girdling a tree by deer or rabbits can kill the tree.
It all depends on how much of the cambium layer has been left intact.
Hopefully, sap is still getting up into the tree and the canopy will slowly recover.
Afraid it’s a case of wait and see.
You may well find that you get some die back up in the canopy as areas are starved of nutrients from the roots. Keep an eye on the tree and be prepared to trim areas back if they show signs of suffering.

!potatoes! · Thu Jun 03, 2021 8:15 am

is it girdled all the way around? I’ve used twigs from higher up the tree (maybe in this case use from the montmorency?) as bridge grafts to cross the girdled section. less necessary if the girdle doesn’t go all the way around the tree.

wisgardener13 · Fri Jun 04, 2021 9:02 pm

Unfortunately the girdle is completely around the tree. I have noticed some leaves starting at the base of the tree. Also, as I mentioned, I can see bright green cambium still above the girdle. The girdle is quite brown at this point so I don’t know if there is anything I can do. Any recommendations on exactly what I can do to help would be appreciated. I am not familiar with how to do grafting although I am aware of the practice. I want to still grow bing as opposed to just more montmorency, not sure if it would save the rest or just become a montmorency.

!potatoes! · Sat Jun 05, 2021 8:00 am

using montmorency as a bridge would still leave the top bing if the graft worked. if it’s starting to bud out below the girdle, I’d be worried that it’s been too long. I won’t be able to explain how to do it any better than an online reference if you want to try.

do you know where the graft is on this tree? if it’s below the girdle, what’s growing back from just below the girdle should be bing. in which case, if the top goes, you might be able to cut it off and let one of the new shoots be the new trunk.

wisgardener13 · Sat Jun 05, 2021 9:29 pm

I have been looking in to the bridge grafting and I am concerned regarding the need to harvest a ‘dormant’ scion. Could I use one of the branches on the bing given that they never leafed out despite seeming to be alive? Everything I read seems to say that I cannot use an active scion, hence my montmorency.

JONA · Sun Jun 13, 2021 6:02 pm

You have to use a dormant scion onto a growing base.
A layer of grafting wax painted over the girdled wound may help retain water and stop pathogens from entering the wound ..while giving it a chance to start producing fresh growth around the damaged area.

wisgardener13 · Fri Jul 16, 2021 2:41 pm

I attempted the bridge graft a few weeks ago now and the scion appears to still be alive. That said, there are now numerous leaves sprouted below the girdle but nothing yet above. Should I be encouraged by this growth? What should I think at this point?

JONA · Sat Jul 17, 2021 3:46 am

If the top has still not broken into growth ..then it looks like it is going to be very difficult to rejuvenate it now.
You could try giving it a very hard prune to relieve the pressure in the trees systems.
The other solution is to use those new growths from below the damaged area to produce a new tree.
Providing they are above the union, then they are still part of the original tree after all.
This would mean cutting the whole tree down to those new shoots. Painting the large wound immediately with a good grafting paint to keep Bacterial Canker and Silver Leaf spores out.
Fingers crossed for you.