[VegGirl7]

Last winter I bought a bare root peach tree (a variety called 'bonanza' on dwarf rootstock) and planted it into a large pot in the unheated greenhouse.

It suffered with peach leaf curl last year so I removed all the affected leaves and binned them a soon as they appeared.
To be honest I didn't hold out much hope, there were few healthy leaves left and it looked a little sorry for itself, but it was alive and so I left it to see what would happen this year...

Well the top of the tree has definitely died off, as you can see in picture 1.  I did the fingernail into the bark trick a few inches below and there's no green at all, but, as you can also see in pic 1, there are three lovely, lush green branches growing from lower down!


Is this the graft in picture 2?  If so all three stems are growing from above the graft so maybe it's salvageable??

The leaves didn't look like typical peach leaves but the ones at the very end (pic 3) are looking more like it and there looks to be small thin leaves starting to grow from the main leaf axils - not sure if this is typical?


I'd love to be able to save this little tree, so any advice on whether this seems likely and what I should do to give it the best chance would be greatly appreciated 

[Beetroot queen]

I had a pear is a similar state and was told it was a write off. If that is the graft I would have said those shoots come from just below .

I am sure someone better will be along shortly to put me straight

[Aunt Sally]

We need a better picture of the graft area.

It looks to me as though the shoots may possibly come from just above the graft.

[VegGirl7]

thanks for the responses... here's, hopefully, a couple of better pictures of the graft area - if it is the graft it seems to be at a downwards angle from the split trunk bit??

The shoot I'm holding in picture 2 is the same one that's at the front in picture 1.

The shoot on far right of 2nd pic is emerging from a couple of inches higher up on the main stem


I'm off up the plot shortly so can take more pictures if needed 

[Aunt Sally]

Your pictures are still a bit fuzzy (do you have a macro setting on the camera), but it does look as if they are above the graft union from those pictures.

[Trillium]

In all honesty, those leaves don't look like peach leaves, which are slim and long, and fairly smooth. The current leaves are coming from the graft so you're okay there...whatever the leaves are.

Other trees can get peach leaf curl, and you did right by binning the affected ones. Now you must give it a good feeding to rebuild it's strength to put out another show of leaves. You can either use a rotted manure slurry or some all purpose fertilizer, depending on your preferred style. Keep the plant gently watered so it can absorb the nutrients and stay hydrated. You should see new leaves fairly soon but fruit this year could be iffy. Play it by ear.

[Aunt Sally]

In all honesty, those leaves don't look like peach leaves, which are slim and long, and fairly smooth.

That's true, Trillium.  Those leaves are rather "round".

[stainesbloke]

Hiya

Looks like the peach above the graft had died and those shoots are from the base stock. Peach leaves are much thinner and longer, even on seedlings.

[Trillium]

VegGirl7, on the upper graft area, do a small scratch test on the trunk section. If it's green, it's still alive. If it's brown....did you happen to keep your receipt?

[Beetroot queen]

Looking atthe pics again next to my pear tree it looks similar for the leave shape? 

[crh75]

Peaches tend to be grafted onto peach root stock so it should still be peach - but unlikely to fruit!

[Trillium]

True crh75 but those are definitely not peach leaves we're seeing, so it's possible the whole tree was mislabelled, which wouldn't be the first time that's happened.

Vegŋirl7 could take one of those leaves and compare it to other trees at a garden centre to know exactly what she has.   

[angelavdavis]

It might be an almond or maybe plum root stock - they usually have rounder leaves don't they (and are used as root stock for peaches)?

[VegGirl7]

Hello, sorry didn't reply yesterday - had the parents round so lots of tidying to do!

I bought from tree DT Brown in March last year (I posted about it and just looked back to remember when)
It was sold as a variety called bonanza and is on St Julien rootstock.  Last year there was definitely peach leaves (long & thin) coming out of the the very top part of the tree so I'm confident the very top of the tree is peach   

If you look at the first picture I posted above, I've done the scratch test a few inches below the top two 'branches' and it was just brown (as are the branches themselves), I've also done a scratch test lower down the central trunk, about 3 inches above where the new shoots are coming out, and that is still very green

Could it be that the peach graft is actually at the top and so the central trunk is actually rootstock, or there are two grafts?

I do agree the large leaves on the new branches don't look 'peachy', but there are small thin leaves starting to grow on them - I've added a photo (sorry they're taken on my phone and aren't great!), they're coming out of the leaf axils...  could it just be that the tree is confused?    I know I am! 

I think I may need more, better photos of leaves

thanks for everyone's help so far!

[Auntiemogs]

I'm having the same problem with my nectarine VegGirl.  I bought it from DTBrown last year but when I saw that it had leaf curl I contacted them and they refunded me the cost.  Thought I'd give it a chance but it's still really bad.  Like yours it's putting out new growth of larger, rounder leaves, except that mine is about 2 feet above the graft.  Not sure if I should persevere with it as although I did lose about half of the top growth, the other half is still alive...