Weeping Cherry trees not weeping anymore
March 8, 2014 at 5:09pm
Why do you sometimes see a weeping cherry tree that has stopped weeping and has suddenly started to grow limbs that are reaching for the sky?

The answer we will find, comes from the fact that almost all weeping cherry trees that are bought and planted can not be found in nature!
Most all weeping cherry trees have been grafted, not once but twice. A weeping cherry has a natural tendency to grow a gnarled and twisted trunk. Standard cherry trees however, tend to have a very straight trunk.
The grafting takes place with the rootstock of a weeping cherry, then the "scion" or trunk of a standard cherry is grafted to the rootstock. Then finally another graft is formed at the top of the trunk where the weeping portion is attached.

weeping cherry with upright growing limbs
weeping cherry with upright growing limbs
a well formed correct weeping cherry
a well formed correct weeping cherry


This gives the tree a very nice look with a straight trunk and the weeping branches cascading down to the ground. The problem comes when the scion begins putting out it's buds and branches. These branches will not weep. These branches are driven by "phototropism" that is the tendency for plants to grow toward the sun.
If you have a weeping cherry and you see that the trunk is starting to produce small branches, the best thing to do is to snip those branches off while they are still small. if they are allowed to grow, removing them later may present challenges.