Dead Blossom Tree

Question

We have a 40 year old flowering cherry blossom tree. It has been spectacular every year, so much so that we take photos of the grandchildren when at its best. Last year I noticed that it looked a bit sparce in places, and this year there is not one bud on it, and the branches that are reachable are dead. Do you know what could have caused this? It is quite distressing. Thank you.

Answer 1

Many smaller fruit trees are relatively short lived. They only live a few decades and then will die of old age. It is very likely this is the case with your tree. It may have been hastened along by a fungus or a pest that attacked the elderly and weakened tree. If any part of it is still alive, I would recommend having a tree specialist come and look at it, but as I said, it is rather old for that variety of tree and there may not be much they can do for it.