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No blossom on cherry tree

djandyliondjandylion Posts: 3
in Problem solving
About ten years ago I acquired two cuttings of cherry tree at the Norfolk Show. I gave one to my son in law and kept the other. Every year his has grown blossom, even had a couple of cherries last year.  Mine has  never even had any blossom. They are both in large tubs. His has survived a house move and several different positions. I have tried various parts of my garden in the hopes mine would get blossom, but this year again there has been none. Any suggestions welcome. 

Posts

  • mrtjformanmrtjforman Posts: 331
    well unless its due to disease (which it could be) then you will have to identify what the difference is. It could be the soil it is in or the location it is planted in in relation to temperatures (a protected site or near a house is warmer than not) or the amount of sunlight it receives. Cherries need lots of sun, the more the better.

    It will also need a decent sized pot of 50 liters minimum. Maybe he is watering his and you are not. Only you will be able to identify the main differences in how you are keeping yours to his. If you still can't find an answer then it might be diseased.
  • djandyliondjandylion Posts: 3
    Thank you for replying. 
    No sign of disease. Has always suffered
    from black fly / leaf curl. Tried dilute washing up liquid to get rid of the black fly. Seemed to work last year. My tree has always been in potting compost, his in garden soil, but both in pots. They have been in both sun and shade. Neglect seemed the best policy for my son in law’s so I tried less t l c to no avail. 
  • ButtercupdaysButtercupdays Posts: 4,281
    Do you  ever feed it?
    The food supply from the compost will have run out in the first few months, it may simply not have the resources to produce flowers. You could try a general one now and switch to a tomato feed nearer to flowering time.
  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Leicestershire, UKPosts: 11,391
    I think you have your answer - soil vs potting compost.  A pot of good garden soil is able to provide nutrients for a few years without additional feeding being needed but multi-purpose compost only has enough added by the manufacturers for about 6 weeks, after which you need to use a liquid feed every few weeks during the growing season.  Plant your tree in the ground or re-pot into soil if possible, otherwise get some general purpose liquid feed and apply as per instructions on the label.  With a bit of luck this will encourage your tree to start blossoming in future years.
    If you did use MPC and have no soil to use then it would be best to get some John Innes #3 compost and re-pot using that.  JI#3 is a formula designed for long-term plantings.
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • djandyliondjandylion Posts: 3
    Thank you so much. I will definitely try the change of soil route. I have no garden soil as such but will try the feed and specific John Innes when I can. Currently locked down at my daughter’s. 
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