We bought a peach tree from lowes, and for weeks nothing happened. Then yesterday I checked one of the top branches for pliability and it was so brittle it snapped I was about to write off the tree as yet another casualty of my inexperienced gardening, but I noticed TINY little leaves near the base of the tree...they are very small but GREEN, and there are only a few, but I could swear they weren't there when we bought it.. For those of you with experience: I assume this means the tree is still alive, but on life support....what can I do to help it?
If youi just bought it this season, I'd take it back to Lowe's and exchange it. Nurseries give a one year guarantee and I would expect Lowe's to follow suit. Call them first to see if you have to bring it in to exchange it or not. Peach trees are one of the more delicate fruit trees. I would guess that it would not make it if the whole thing is brittle except the bottom leaves.
It MAY be a grafted tree, with the roots/trunk from one stock and the top parts - that would produce the fruit - from another. If the new growth is coming from near the roots, it could be that the whole graft has died but the stock part is still alive. If it is not grafted, you might just need to prune back the top branches to green wood so it can come out from higher up in the limbs. Call Lowe's and ask for advice.
returning it to Lowes...I think somehow if it is my fault if it doesn't make it...Given my track record, it probably is. But that's a good idea, I will definitely call them!
