i was thinking about your little cherry tree. It's going to drop it's leafs. Once it does I would try and give it a second chance by:
1) See if it's still alive with a scratch test. Near the top of the tree gently scratch away a small patch of bark with a sharp knife to get a visual of the cambium. If you see green under the bark it's still alive. If you see brown means it's dead or atleast that branch is dead.
If it's still alive.
1) Pull back the wood chip much away from its trunk and drip line down the bare soil. There is such a thing as fruit tree suffocation from too much mulch. Roots need to be able to gas off (breath). The maximum mulch depth rule of thumb for fruit trees, is generally 3 inches deep and mulch should not touch the trunk.
2) Then I would spray it organic fungicides alternate to the next the fungicide at the next spray interval. I would start with copper, then next spray interval sulfur, then copper again, then sulfur. It may re-leaf back out or it may not but atleast you can try and give it a second chance.
4) for an insecticide cover spray, you can mix water, neem and BT with a squirt of Palmolive orginal green (not the concentrate) to control most midwest insects, which there are plenty to choose from.
5) If your cherry tree does come back then spray it with dormant oil when it goes into dormancy and then again at bud swell late winter/early spring. And matain a fungicide spray schedule during pre bloom, bloom, petal coversprays. Look at your state university for a home orchard spray schedule.
4) If you don't already have one, get and learn how to use a soil PH meter. Cherry does best in a natural soil PH of 6.6 - 7.3 this is a fairly narrow range. shoot for 7.0. sulfur will lower the soil PH and lime will raise it's PH read labels for how much to apply.
Side note... from my experience... stone fruits are fungus magnets here in the Midwest. I've been able to keep our stone fruits mostly healthy with a organic spray schedule, insecticide cover sprays and adjusting soil PH. However I wouldn't hesitate using non-organics if I encountered something that would kill a fruit tree that organic can't control. I do however draw the do not use line with synthetics.
But all the above is just what I would try... Whatever you choose to do, Good Luck to you!
In closing... * An extra important note. Always follow the directions on the label. Contrary to popular believe, more of a product in terms of frequency and or amount is not better. It's considered off label and will likely do more damage than good.
Here's what I use for fungicides and dormant oil. They are labeled for organic gardening.
Thanks for showing pictures, it really helps to see a visual and made me think
Jesus is Lord and Christ
perfect!
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Perhaps sella needs more time, that's my hope anyways. This science experiment will run several weeks before I drawn any conclusions.
