Monkey Puzzle Problems

Hello all, we have a monkey puzzle in our garden which has been there for at least 30+ years. Over the last few years, it seems to have declined. Firstly, it seemed to be weeping sap from the trunk and a lot of branches had turned brown on the lower rungs. This year, though, some of the branches are turning yellow and a lot seem to be going brown now and not just on the lower rungs. Do you think it may be diseased and is it beyond being helped? Any advice would be welcome. Thanks

 

I see a few of these struggling around here, we don't have lots that reach adulthood but some do.
They don't like heat and dryness imo, neither do they like exceptionally cold winters.

 

They come from Chile/Argentina and like a temperate climate with plenty of rainfall.
So depending on your location it could be struggling with hot dry summers, or just dry conditions in general.
It also won't enjoy being waterlogged in winter.

 

Yes - sides of mountains in Chile, so cold weather isn't a problem for them either. I have a good photo of one in a garden not far from me. It had been very wet, and then it froze overnight [pretty common here in winter] and, from a distance, it looked like there were candles on the branches. They were icicles....
They grow very easily here - loads of them in this area. Dry conditions, long term, is the most likely reason for them failing to thrive.
If you have a photo @Gemma36 , that will help with more accurate advice with your specimen too. There may be another reason - ie damage etc.

 

There was an article a few years ago about mature Monkey Puzzles in Wales, in a magazine, all planted around the same time.
Monkey Puzzle Tree - National Botanic Garden of Wales
Also https://www.anglochileansociety.org/_files/ugd/23b37f_d56003d7203841039c547d592c4a7e58.pdf
https://www.anglochileansociety.org/monkeypuzzleuk