Full size apple tree girdled...

[RJG2]

I should probably join a different forum for this, but hey, I like you people.

I have a regular apple tree in ground, and just noticed it has been completely girdled at the base this winter... Seems too low for bridge grafts

Any options or cut my losses? I'm a bit sad considering I've grafted 9 apple varieties on it...

Maybe clean up the cut, pile up some dirt, and pray for a giant ground layer?! Bah

 

[Tieball]

Is the tree girdled all the way around?

 

[River's Edge]

I should probably join a different forum for this, but hey, I like you people.

I have a regular apple tree in ground, and just noticed it has been completely girdled at the base this winter... Seems too low for bridge grafts

Any options or cut my losses? I'm a bit sad considering I've grafted 9 apple varieties on it...

Maybe clean up the cut, pile up some dirt, and pray for a giant ground layer?! Bah

View attachment 421347

View attachment 421348

I would definately surround the girdled area with soil mixed with sphagnum up six inches. make a collar out of a pail. just cut the bottom out, make one vertical cut and place around the base. Duct tape the vertical cut and fill with soil. If you have any rooting hormone but it one the affected area as well. I would not recut at this point. Just cover up and be patient, you might be surprised, this type of damage can repair and may even bridge over due to connection left between root separations that are inside the grooves.

 

[RJG2]

Is the tree girdled all the way around?

Yes, the photos are about 180* apart.

 

[RJG2]

I would definately surround the girdled area with soil mixed with sphagnum up six inches. make a collar out of a pail. just cut the bottom out, make one vertical cut and place around the base. Duct tape the vertical cut and fill with soil. If you have any rooting hormone but it one the affected area as well. I would not recut at this point. Just cover up and be patient, you might be surprised, this type of damage can repair and may even bridge over due to connection left between root separations that are inside the grooves.

Thanks, I'll give it a try! I think it's the first tree I planted when I bought the house, so it's a little heartbreaking - especially due to the work I've put in on grafting the other varieties!

Edit: Any sense in waiting? Ground is still pretty frozen, what you see is about all I could scrape back.

 

[River's Edge]

Thanks, I'll give it a try! I think it's the first tree I planted when I bought the house, so it's a little heartbreaking - especially due to the work I've put in on grafting the other varieties!

Edit: Any sense in waiting? Ground is still pretty frozen, what you see is about all I could scrape back.

No sense in waiting, the ground in the collar will just provide some additional protection and prevent further desiccation.

 

[Shibui]

While one side is definitely dead the second picture is less definite. Looks like some of the damage may actually be callus growing. You can see more than the photos so are in a much better position to judge the real condition.
My first point would be to work out what has caused the problem. No sense putting effort into a fix when the same problem is just going to make it happen again.
The usual culprits here would be mowers, line trimmers and animals or pests. Really low down like that I'd suspect careless use of a line trimmer as number one cause. Where you are there may be other explanations.
I would not hold out much hope of a large tree producing enough roots to survive but spring is the best time of year for root production and miracles so worth a try.

 

[RJG2]

While one side is definitely dead the second picture is less definite. Looks like some of the damage may actually be callus growing. You can see more than the photos so are in a much better position to judge the real condition.
My first point would be to work out what has caused the problem. No sense putting effort into a fix when the same problem is just going to make it happen again.
The usual culprits here would be mowers, line trimmers and animals or pests. Really low down like that I'd suspect careless use of a line trimmer as number one cause. Where you are there may be other explanations.
I would not hold out much hope of a large tree producing enough roots to survive but spring is the best time of year for root production and miracles so worth a try.

Definitely not from a string trimmer, but lawnmower is a small possibility - my wife did most of the mowing this past year considering she hasn't worked since our son was born and the pandemic has been happening. I'm pretty sure the mower clearance is higher than the wound though.

 

[Shibui]

Lawn mower damage is usually a little higher so that leaves pests and disease, soil or weather as likely. You may be able to manage pests or disease if you can ID the culprit but if soil or weather is responsible you may be pushing uphill to cure this.

Good Luck

 

[RJG2]

Lawn mower damage is usually a little higher so that leaves pests and disease, soil or weather as likely. You may be able to manage pests or disease if you can ID the culprit but if soil or weather is responsible you may be pushing uphill to cure this.

Good Luck

My best guess is vole damage. Nothing has changed with the soil in the last 14 years as far as I know. Maybe the organic fertilizer I used this year lured in the pests.

When the snow started melting I saw a bunch of burrow paths (not necessarily to the apple tree, but all over the years).

 

[Dav4]

My best guess is vole damage. Nothing has changed with the soil in the last 14 years as far as I know. Maybe the organic fertilizer I used this year lured in the pests.

When the snow started melting I saw a bunch of burrow paths (not necessarily to the apple tree, but all over the years).

When I lived in MA, I remember having landscape trees- not quite as big as yours, but substantial- literally fall over as the ground thawed, courtesy of voles eating away the roots. Fruit trees are particularly vulnerable. It sounds like a special tree... hopefully, it recovers.

 

[RJG2]

Here goes nothin'