Poorly Rowan

[RedQueenie]

Hiya, I'm hoping someone may be able to offer some advise on our Rowan tree. We have had it for quite a few years and it has never really done that well. While clearing around it today we noticed the bottom of the trunk looks different to the rest of it. I'm worried it's rotten and that we will have to get rid which I'm loathed to do as the birds love the berries. I have attached some photos of the trunk and leaves.

[Stubby]

3 hours ago, RedQueenie said:

Hiya, I'm hoping someone may be able to offer some advise on our Rowan tree. We have had it for quite a few years and it has never really done that well. While clearing around it today we noticed the bottom of the trunk looks different to the rest of it. I'm worried it's rotten and that we will have to get rid which I'm loathed to do as the birds love the berries. I have attached some photos of the trunk and leaves.

To be brutal I would take it out and start again with something else .

[RedQueenie]

Can you tell me why you think that please?

[Stubby]

7 hours ago, RedQueenie said:

Can you tell me why you think that please?

It seems to be struggling and from the pics a possible fungle infection and I don't know how to make it better . Just a quick edit , I'm all for the birds and feed them all the time so , Until you can sort something else hang some feeders somewhere you can see . I'm currently getting lots of Gold Finches among others .

Edited October 19 by Stubby

[slack ma girdle]

It looks like its been ring barked. You are onto a hiding for nothing trying to keep it going, it will keep declining until it falls over.

Start again.

[Stere]

Theres  a slim chance it might coppice from the stump, below the damage if felled.

 

 

[peds]

3 hours ago, slack ma girdle said:

It looks like its been ring barked. You are onto a hiding for nothing trying to keep it going, it will keep declining until it falls over.

Start again.

 

Strimmer damage when young, tried its best to heal over time, slowly rotted to the current result?

 

9 minutes ago, Stere said:

Theres  a slim chance it might coppice from the stump, below the damage if felled.

 

Could be an ornamental variety on a regular rootstock (doesn't look massively ornamental from the twig pics, but the poor thing hasn't been well...), and coppicing could revert it to the original. Which isn't a bad thing at all, of course.

 

To that end, could be a bad graft that allowed rot in early and festered.

 

OP, when you say quite a few years, how many is that? You might be best starting again with a healthier tree.

[RedQueenie]

We have had it for roughly 10 years. It has always looked sorry for its self. I can understand thinking it may be strimmer damage, but we have never owned a strimmer and it is set away from the lawn for the mower to get anywhere near. The damaged bit feels firm still. Could using Medo or a wood hardener protect it from further deterioration?

[Mick Dempsey]

Planted too deep.

[Stubby]

5 hours ago, Mick Dempsey said:

Planted too deep.

Yep Mick could well be right . Roots have to breath ( Mick is usually right ! ) 🙂