I have a flowering plumb tree that I planted back in September of 07 and it is still the exact same size?

Question

It was recommended that I re-post my question with a bit more information so here it is.

I live in No. California and planted a flowering plumb tree in Sept. of last year. The tree was about 15 feet tall when I planted it and I put it in 4 feet of top quality soil. I ensure that it gets plenty of water but it just does not seem to be growing. The branches still point upward and have no leaves on the top foot or so of the branches.

I have fertilized the entire yard (including the area where the tree is) three times since spring but still no progress.

I am hoping that the tree has simply spent the first year growing roots and that it will go nuts next year but otherwise I am thinking about taking it back out of the ground and planing something else. This year as been very warm (we actually hit 112 one day) but most has not been too bad. Mostly mid to high 90's.

I hope that this is enough information.

Answer 1

one thing is that it is a slow grower and it possibly could just trying to get established.  also check the depth that you planted it.  if you put to much dirt on top of the surface roots it will just sit there and sooner or later it will die.

Answer 2

Is it a dwarf variety?  If so, that's about as tall as it's going to get.....  Trees need a lot of time to establish a root system, especially one that large.  And I'd back off on the feeding for awhile.  Truthfully, unless your soil is really terrible, once a year is enough.  

How often do you water?  Do you water deeply or just a little on the surface?  The correct way is to water allowing the water to soak in deep into the soil and then not watering for a week.  Small, frequent waterings do not encourage root growth.  

Good luck!

Answer 3

This tree was very advanced at 15 ft when you planted it.  You don't say if the tree was potted or you transplanted from somewhere else but either way the roots will have been quite small or reduced for the amount of foliage it carried.

You should be watering well and deeply (leave the hose running at 1/3 to 1/2 for 1/2 an hour a week if established and more frequently if it is not established.  Don't let the soil dry out completely until it is established.  Frequent light watering or lawn watering won't be good enough for a tree this size.

Get some seasol (or other sea weed extract from garden centres), this is not a fertilizer but a tonic and root promoter and is excellent for newly planted plants of any description.

Don't continue to fertilize you may be stressing it if it hasn't had time to develop a lot of roots.  Start fertilizing when new growth appears and only at the recommended levels (3 times sound like too much).

Plums grow well where I live in arid Australia with water, but can burn off and die back if they get far to hot and get a 'sun burn' of the leaves.  That 112 day could have given you a bit of die back at the top and you may have to prune the leafless bits back if this is the problem.  

We find where I live that once the very hot weather comes plant growth stops for most plants and they go into survival mode till next autumn or spring.

I think with care it just needs some time to establish at 15ft it wasn't a slow grower and plums usuallly aren't.