Review of Lala Star Sweet Cherry

Lala Star is a new variety of sweet cherry. It was bred in an area of Italy with a similar climate to Virginia (though not as cold). EdibleLandscaping.com has been offering it for trial here in the US.

I decided to try it rather than Stella cherry because I was intrigued by the cherry's origins. I planted it almost a year ago at the same time as a Montmorency sour cherry. I'm writing this post because as a new variety to the US, I think it might be beneficial to have some feedback on how it is doing in Mid-Atlantic/East Coast conditions. 

Some of the Lala Star's pruning cuts are oozing.
Some are not. Bacterial canker is suspected.

Oozing Bark

Unfortunately, I think my tree has a bacterial disease. It's oozing a tobacco-colored or dark-amber-colored gel each time it rains from a couple of different locations on the plant. When it gets hot and dry, the oozing seems to dry up. 

It's not coming from every pruning location, but it is coming from at least two of them, plus a couple of cracks in the bark. 

I haven't noticed this type of ooze on my Montmorency or any of the other Rosaceae family fruit trees on my property. (I also have 3 varieties of apple, 3 varieties of pear, 2 a Halls Hardy Almonds, a Methley plum, a Harrow Diamond peach, a Breda Giant medlar, and some Nanking Bush Cherries.) 

Cytospora Bacterial Canker?

I suspect it is bacterial canker, specifically Cytospora canker (Leucostoma cincta), which is an opportunistic pathogen that often enters through wounds. I have had the occasional deer visitor, so I have needed to clip off a ragged twig on a couple of occasions. The deer-damaged area is where I first noticed the oozing. 

The deer have damaged other trees in the area as well (including the other cherry) on the same visit. However, this the only tree in my orchard that is displaying the canker. This makes me wonder whether it is not as resistant to Cytospora as some of my other varieties. I don't know how normal it is not have this type of canker, but it seems to have spread quickly from those first two locations. Admittedly, the deer left a far more ragged wound on this tree compared to the mostly clean clips they gave to my other trees. The Methley plum also got a ragged wound due to deer and it has not shown any symptoms, however. (BTW, I sanitize my pruning shears between cuts.)

Given that the tree was installed a little less than a year go in this location and that it is oozing from multiple locations, I don't think the tree can be saved. I plan to remove it later this weekend because I don't want it to infect any of my other trees. Eventually, I will plant another sweet cherry in a different location. If I replant in this location, it will be with something that isn't in the Rosaceae family.

You can see here, that the ooze is building up
into distinct globs at this pruning cut. It also oozes
from another cut further up.

The tree is also oozing from cracks in the bark.
This is one of two locations with this type of crack.

Other Notes:

 I haven't sprayed these trees with anything, but I have composted them with composted horse manure. (The manure pile had been composting for 8 years, so it was essentially a histosol by the time I applied it.) I've needed to pick off some Japanese beetles off of the foliage this month. Some of the area underneath the trees are planted with peanuts for additional soil-building activity. Earlier in the season, I sprinkled some of the area with dried blood meal to deter deer and to provide nitrogen before the peanuts were planted. I have been giving supplemental water in between rain storms this season as my trees are all still too young to be fully established.