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It's been about a week since I last had a look at the Stella cherry and there are lots of tiny black insects on many leaves and fruit stalks, the leaves are all scrunched up aswell - what happened, what can I do - will they affect the fruit?

it is under aphid attack, blackfly, possibly greenfly in the scrunched up leaves, they will affect the tree eventually how you deal with it is up to you, I am organic, I would probably hang a couple of fat balls in the trees to attract tits, they will harvest aphids while they wait for the fat, remove some by hand if possible without damaging the fruit, you could use a spray either of pyrethrum or neem in the evening after the bees are quiet. I try to make sure there are things in flower near my trees that will attract beneficial insects, spraying the tree with a foliar feed of seaweed would also benefit the health of the tree, if it is newly planted, it could be thirsty that would weaken the tree

You could try spraying with a mix of diswashing detergent, water and a little light cooking oil - the detergents coat the aphid and suffocate the critters by blocking the spiracles - works on aphids on roses. Downside is that you need to be doing this nearly daily until the population crashes. Try 1 tablespoon of dishwashing detergent, 1 litre of water and 2 teaspoons light cooking oil - need to shake frequently to keep it mixed

I couldn't help but cut off some of the worst of the infested crumpled leaves and put them in the bin that I was going to take out that evening, which I completely forgot about. So, next morning the bin was swarming with these little things, yuck! I think I'll use an insecticide to get rid of the worst and then try something organic to keep them down or from coming back.

Will it be okay to use Rose Clear Ultra on fruit now when the leaves are in bud or does it still have to be specialist fruit chemicals at this stage of growth

Weedo wrote: ↑Thu May 11, 2017 10:30 pm Try 1 tablespoon of dishwashing detergent, 1 litre of water and 2 teaspoons light cooking oil - need to shake frequently to keep it mixed

Will DP liquid soap do the trick just as well?

Wrong time of year right now, but when the leaves are gone, try Winter Wash on the tree. I think it counts as Organic...

This is a cherry tree in a little raised bed made with some bricks. I've added some fresh compost and used a few bricks around the tree trunk to protect it from the added layer. Is it necessary? If I remove the protective ring of bricks and add a couple or few inches of compost, will the trunk rot or harden up? FYI, the twigs are there to stop the neighbour's cat from toileting in the fresh compost.

I don't think it'll rot, but don't raise the soil above the graft or the stock will start to grow.

I was digging nearby and dug up a root, it was damaged by the spade so I made a clean cut with pruners. Will it be alright to bury it back into the soil? Will it now cause damage to the tree? Also, I've noticed ants going up it even though the leaves are still only in bud - is it too late to put a band around the trunk?

Pretty sure the root won't mind being buried back in the soil.

In other news: Our Stella cherry is now gone . Sadly, it was a victim of its own success and literally outgrew our garden!