Question
Last summer my laburnum (golden chain tree) defoliated because of too little water. The tree survived and this spring there are buds on the tree. It is now May in Virginia and all trees have leafed out. The laburnum has not. It is still alive and the buds are soft. Is there anything I can do to jolt the tree into activity? Something is clearly wrong.

Answer
It does not sound good for your chain tree. There is not anything that will "jolt" the tree to leaf out. Make sure it has water (water once a week). Check and see if the leaf buds are still alive-try breaking a couple off and if they come off easy and crumble they are dead. Hardwoods generally will sprout out again IF there first buds are killed for some reason, so I would give it some time say a month and check for new buds. You did not say how old the tree is -if it is new then the problem maybe the site the tree is growing in. Best if grown in a spot protected from full day sun with very well-drained alkaline soil with a high level of organic matter.