Weeping Cherry trees: Re: weeping cherry tree and lilac apear to be dead?

» Carol Wallace - Re: weeping cherry tree and lilac apear to be dead?

In response to message posted by lucia52:
Many gardeners - and even many nurseries - are reporting that they have more than average winter kill on their shrubs and trees. I would start by pruning off all the dead stuff. The tree actually doesn't know that those branches are dead and is wasting energy trying to send them nourishment. If you scratch the trunk lightly and see green then you know there is life in the tree.

Lilacs can take a very hard pruning. That may mean sacrificing this year's flowers, but they will come back unless they have contracted some kind of fatal disease.
But I would also carefullu inspect both of them to see if there is any bark damage - especially at the base. If mice or rabbits gnawed at the base of the stem and girdled it, the tree is doomed for all practical purposes. If insects have crawled under the bark, you also have problems. Check for any sign of pests to see if they aren't at the root of your problem.

-- posted by Carol Wallace