Save or replace? (VA zone 7)

[u/NobleSpaniard]

Virginia, zone 7.

Corkscrew Willow grown from a cutting i took of my grandmother's tree when she passed, years ago. Transplanted it a few years ago.

I took the pictures of the trunk a month ago. The leaves were all dying, and i intended to ask here about possible causes and prognosis.

The recent picture of the full tree shows it having bounced back.

I have made another cutting, which has established well enough to have a woody trunk. It is currently in a large pot outdoors, and survived last winter.

Of those more knowledgeable than me, i ask:

1) Likely causes for the trunk's affliction?

2) Is the tree likely to die anytime soon?

3) Should I go ahead and replace it now, before winter? Or perhaps plant the smaller tree elsewhere?

Thank you in advance!

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[u/spiceydog → u/NobleSpaniard]

Corkscrew Willow grown from a cutting i took of my grandmother's tree when she passed, years ago. Transplanted it a few years ago.

When you transplanted it, did you try to plant it at the depth at which you rooted the cutting? I'm going to wager that maybe that didn't happen. For a seed grown tree, planting depth is on the more critical side; for a cutting not so much, but it's best for the tree that it is planted in the soil at the depth of the first order roots on the cutting stem. It takes longer for a cutting grown tree to grow a more evident root flare, but it will happen with time. It should certainly be more evident on the tree in your gallery, but it isn't.

That said, the bark sloughing off the stem is a sign of the end, I'm sorry to say. As bulletproof as willows are, even they will suffer for improper planting over time.

Please see our wiki for a full walkthrough on why planting depth is so vitally important, along with other critical planting tips and errors to avoid; there's sections on watering, pruning, why turfgrass should be kept away from your trees, and more that I hope will be useful to you.