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tree identification

jnelsonjnelson Posts: 32
in Plants
hi all, hope you can help, can anyone identify this tree/shrub? it's getting a bit too tall and I don't know whether to cut it down or if it can be managed, I can't remember seeing any flowers or berries on it this year.

Posts

  • jnelsonjnelson Posts: 32
    sorry, my previous post re tree identification, couldn't upload the photos first time, hope it works this time, any help in identifying it would be appreciated.
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 83,839
    edited September 2018
    Possibly an ornamental cherry ...?  but they don't usually grow very tall ... 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • Silver surferSilver surfer Posts: 4,439
    Agree with Dove..Prunus sp....a cherry.
    However even the UK wild cherry Prunus avium can grow very tall and form beautiful trees.

    https://www.google.com/search?q=prunus+avium&client=firefox-b&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiC8LrJn-DdAhULUlAKHYOhCo4Q_AUIDigB&biw=1920&bih=944
    Perthshire. SCOTLAND .
  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,391
    Might be a wild 'bird cherry' (Prunus avium.)  They can grow quite large and the saplings are fast growers.
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 83,839
    edited September 2018
    I was thinking that its habit looked a bit like one of the fastigiate ones that don't grow so large ... but yes, Prunus avium can grow into splendid quite large trees.   :)

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • Lizzie27Lizzie27 Posts: 11,166
    I think our purple leaved flowering cherry has a max of 20-25 ft height from memory but you do have to be careful when you prune them. Usually recommended in July/Aug but you may get away with it now. If you prune in the winter when there's no leaves (which is much easier), there is a risk of silver leaf disease which can kill them. Also we found the tree does tend to look ugly if you just cut 3-4 ft off the height of each branch (which is what we did at first), and I'm not sure there's a good way to restrict the height.  Hopefully others might have some good advice here.
    North East Somerset - Clay soil over limestone
  • jnelsonjnelson Posts: 32
    thank you all for your input, we already have a large cherry tree that we inherited when we moved in, I've attached a photo of it from a couple of years ago to show the size and think from what you said Silver Surfer and Bob that's it's the wild cherry and it's established itself in the bed on the left of the photo which already has a number of shrubs so looks like I'll have to take it out if it's going to grow that big
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 83,839
    If you already have a cherry it may be from a seed ... but it may also have come from a sucker ... cherries do tend to sucker a lot, particularly once they've been pruned.

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





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