Weird Homecoming.

[gness]

Lovely journey home.......shall travel by car and ship from now on......and no, it's not just to ogle the crew in uniform........though I may get Dave to invest in a sailor suit.... ;-)

My neighbours have cared for my garden beautifully...but......my gorgeous little willow tree which was stunning three weeks ago is a crisp......just brown and shrivelled leaves and branches....and a branch from a nearby tree is on the ground and the same crispy, sorry sight....????

Nothing else has suffered from heat and there are more susceptible plants close by.....

Any thoughts?....Lightning by any chance?.....Gx

[Islay]

Has someone sprayed it with weedkiller?

[mikey4444]

Willow are very thirsty trees Islay....perhaps it was watered but not watered enough.

[melv16]

Fungal or attacked by insects? Horse chestnut trees are susceptible to attacks by a species of moth, the caterpillars scoff the leaves.

[gness]

Doubt that very much, Islay......no access to the garden other than kind, key holding neighbours and it's so close to other still thriving plants......plus the nearby branch of the tree is making that less likely to be something like that.....
I know willows don't like drought but it's in a shady place and everything around it is lush.....as in green....not drunk.....

You okay now....saw you had a blip with penicillin?.....x

[Islay]

Still not a 100% thanks for asking.

[Islay]

Found this

http://homeguides.sfgate.com/leaves-weeping-willow-brown-spots-curling-up-90821.html

[gness]

Hi, Melv and Mikey.....it's not in the driest part of the garden by a long way......and very shady......
I know willows can suffer from lack of water...I have lost one before in my previous garden..... but this has gone so quickly from lush and green to a brittle crisp....leaves.....branches and trunk...........plus the one branch from the nearby tree to be in the same condition but on the ground is making me wonder......... :-(

[Tilly2]

If it was a lightning strike, wouldn't it look burned rather than just brown and crisp?

[gness]

Thanks for that, Islay...have had a skim read will look closer.....
There is no evidence of spots, fungus, canker......just curled and frizzled leaves and dry twigs and branches......

Take care....hope you're back as chirpy as you seemed a couple of weeks ago......I think most procedures have the odd blip....you'll get there!.....x

[melv16]

Chop it off at ground level to see if it recovers.
I'm in mourning for two courgette plants that have suddenly bitten the dust :-(

[MargoTester]

You could try taking a piece of it to a local garden centre to see if they can help. Is there any sap left in it?

[woofgang]

I have got the same thing here gness only mine is a winter flowering honeysuckle. All the shrubs around it are green and healthy and this looks burnt.....not even drooping and it didn’t droop, it went from green to brown. No idea why and it doesn’t look like an infection or a bug.

[gness]

I don't know, Tilly......it's the branch of the tree that's adding to the puzzle......and everything around both looking so good...
I think if it was lack of water other plants would appear to be suffering.....and the buckets and pots I've left out are full of rainwater so there have been some downpours....
Will ask the neighbours, when they're home, about storms......
Poor tree....I did love it.....but every cloud....a garden centre visit beckons......x

[gness]

I'm too old to wait for it to grow to this height again, Melv....:-( But I have a plan for that soon to be bare spot wandering around in my mind......x

No, Margo.....I tested it all as soon as I spotted it......and there is no sap at all anywhere.....it's just snappy and brittle....dry as if it's never seen water.....x

It is a mystery, Woof.....I have checked everything around it.....and the plants are so healthy and thriving......there are no bugs or evidence of bugs to be seen......the ground under isn't particularly dry...x

[gness]

Oh and I will ask at my garden centre, Margo....they're great there and really helpful.....good idea....x