Question
It has been extremely hot in Pennsylvania, with 29 days over 90 degrees, and over two weeks without rain. The leaves on my 3 year old Kwanzan cherry have suddenly drooped, many have holes in them, and some have turned brown.   I thought it was lack of water so we watered for a half hour at a slow drip. No improvement.  The last few days we have had heavy rain, but still no improvement.  Could it be something else?

Answer
Hi Deborah, Verticillium Wilt
Verticillium wilt is caused by a soil-borne fungus (Verticillium dahliae). Mild verticillium wilt symptoms include yellowing foliage, brown leaf edges, shoot or branch dieback, and sudden wilting. Severe symptoms include red leaf color, total dieback and curling leaves. A lethal case of verticillium wilt causes the entire plant to collapse. Verticillium wilt symptoms are most likely to appear during hot weather conditions late in the summer.  I would try a product called Atomic Grow that will take care of all problems of the cherry tree.  It is organic and will bring your tree back to health, which means the bugs will leave and your tree will be more beautiful than before.  kathy