Help my trees!

I have two problems: One is my yoshino cherry tree - I noticed the other day it was getting a few yellow leaves. It's been dry here for a long time, so I thought maybe it needs more water. I poked my finger in the soil and it didn't feel dry - it was kind of damp, and the sprinklers went off this morning, so I think it is getting enough water. BUT then I noticed that every single leaf's edges are browning evenly around the edges. What is going on? The only other factor besides moisture would be that we applied some compost a month or two ago. ...

The other problem is one of my butterfly bushes has its leaves curling at the very tips (and browning). It's right next to 2 other butterfly bushes that look fine. Again do you think this is a moisture problem? or compost? Thanks for any help!!

Their burnt. To much sun. My 2 cents.

I agree. Esp since it was dry there for a long time, next spring apply compost early and put soaker hose in place by July. :0)

Brown foliage can mean too much water just as much as too little. If the soil is too wet, this can lead to root rots. Root rots mean fewer roots to absorb needed water, hence brown edges and wilting leaves. Brown edges can also mean too much fertilizer, and a few other problems. Frankly, if a Buddleia is showing moisture stress, too little water would not be my first worry.

Scott

is that because they are drought tolerant?

Yes Buddleia are drought tolerant when their mature. Problem I'm having is we're having a drought this summer which means no clouds which means the plants are getting full dead middle summer UV rays. I have a few plants that aren't that sun tolerant burning on their edges and it has nothing to do with water. My elephants ears are burnt for sure, dogwoods which are in a pretty shaded area are also having burn problems. My sun lovers are having no problems.

Is there any place in the country that isn't having a drought?

I have read also, can't remember where, that when the edges and tips of leaves turn brown and dry, that's the plant's reaction to environmental damage. It pushes pollutants and toxins out toward the edges of the leaves.

Ok, i have some more info - it's the cherry tree I'm really worried about (the butterfly bush was less than 10 dollars last year). I poked my finger in the soil today to see if it was wet or not, and noticed that there is a thick layer of roots less than 1/2 inch deep all around the cherry tree. I know that this is not good, and is probably adding to the stress of the tree. I am guessing that it means I am not watering deeply enough, and so it is producing shallow roots. Is this true? Or could I be drowning it, causing the shallow roots? We water it with out lawn sprinkler system every other day for 20 minutes....

It could be the watering, but more likely it was how the tree was planted in the first place. Especially if you have clay soil, if the plant was either container grown or it was bare root but you put a bunch of amendments in the hole with it when you planted it, then it's possible that it basically became rootbound in its hole. It's hard for roots to grow out into clay soil, so if the soil in the planting hole is nicer than clay, the roots will tend to stay in there rather than spreading out into the soil, and eventually the effect is the same as if you grew it in the same pot for too long.

Also, 20 min every other day with the lawn sprinkler sounds like too much for most trees, but I'm not too familiar with your climate and also not too familiar with what cherries will put up with. It's also easier to overwater if you have a situation like I described above--the clay soil around the planting hole acts almost like a pot, so water would tend to sit in the hole rather than draining out

Darn it. We have extremely sandy soil - but I was wondering if we broke it up enough when we planted. It definatley wasn't rootbound when we planted it, and it hasn't been very moist at all when i stick my finger in the soil. I planted 3 maple trees in the same soil (and didn't add amendments), and they look great! (with the same amount of water). I remember hearing that cherries hate to be wet. But it's been such a dry summer, that even my syringa and sumac have needed extra soaks. Is there anything I can do for it now?

The stuff I described tends to happen more in clay soil, I don't know if something similar can happen in sandy soil or not so I don't even know if that's your problem. I've only ever had clay soil everywhere I've lived so I don't know anything about sand.