tom whitten
New Member
We have a beautiful old Sugar Maple in the front yard, roughly 3 1/2' in diameter... the house is 220 years old in a rural area, and we're guessing it's at least 200 years old. I know that's a pretty good run, but I'd really like to save this tree if at all possible. So I guess my main question is... can it be saved, and if so, how? Or is it just old age and I need to let nature take it's course?
Here's everything I can think to help diagnose it. In the past couple of years it's begun to die in about 10% of the area on the upper limbs, jsut a few dead branches about 1"-2" in diameter on the top, and hasn't had helicopters in 2 years (although we have had some pretty tough winters up here in the Northeast, but my younger maples are producing helicopters just fine). More important, about 4 of the 6-8 main trunks emanating from the crotch of the tree (about 12' up) are hollow in the center, some as wide as 50% of the diameter, and they are hollow for about a foot or so in. A couple other large limbs of about 4-8" diamter are split for a foot or so, but healed and "grew back together" and produce apparently healthy leaves and limbs.
What's even sadder was the discovery I made yesterday. A few days ago a large branch about 10" in diameter broke off (by far the largest branch I've ever lost), we were away but had a relatively minor thunderstorm and rain, not a lot of wind but it must have been gusting, that's the only thing I can think of to cause it. I don't think it simply finally broke off on it's own. When cleaning up and cutting it up I found that there's a 1" vein of really soft, rotten wood that ran from the main trunk (where I pruned a clean cut) about 15' out on the limb... further out than that and the 2-3" thick part of the limb didn't have any rot.
BTW I've lost small branches about 2"-4" before, and I've pruned them properly, and they all healed nicely with a nice, solid canker. No black spot on leaves, no major insect infestations that I can find.
Part of this may be my neglect of the tree... I hadn't fertilized it at all for about 8 years... just the occasional weed n feed on the lawn, maybe once a year at 50% of the recommended rate. But those "hollows" in the main limbs at the crotch of the tree have been there for years, even before I bought the house, although I'm guessing they're much worse now. This spring I researched and did a light surface application of the correct fertilizer on the lawn, reduced in amount by about 50% to be on the safe side. Then in late June I augured 2 rows of holes about 1' deep and 1.5" wide around the dripline, and applied 2/3 teaspoon of fertilizer in each hole (the correct amount according to the University of Vermont). In the past month I also sprayed a fungicide on the lilies that grow under the tree in about a 7' radius... I doubt that's related but it's the only thing that's changed in recent years that I can think of.
I live in upstate NY... no salt or anything like that is within 300' feet of the tree. Any help would be appreciated... it's an awesome tree and I'd like to save it if at all possible. I have photos if that will help. Thanks!
Here's everything I can think to help diagnose it. In the past couple of years it's begun to die in about 10% of the area on the upper limbs, jsut a few dead branches about 1"-2" in diameter on the top, and hasn't had helicopters in 2 years (although we have had some pretty tough winters up here in the Northeast, but my younger maples are producing helicopters just fine). More important, about 4 of the 6-8 main trunks emanating from the crotch of the tree (about 12' up) are hollow in the center, some as wide as 50% of the diameter, and they are hollow for about a foot or so in. A couple other large limbs of about 4-8" diamter are split for a foot or so, but healed and "grew back together" and produce apparently healthy leaves and limbs.
What's even sadder was the discovery I made yesterday. A few days ago a large branch about 10" in diameter broke off (by far the largest branch I've ever lost), we were away but had a relatively minor thunderstorm and rain, not a lot of wind but it must have been gusting, that's the only thing I can think of to cause it. I don't think it simply finally broke off on it's own. When cleaning up and cutting it up I found that there's a 1" vein of really soft, rotten wood that ran from the main trunk (where I pruned a clean cut) about 15' out on the limb... further out than that and the 2-3" thick part of the limb didn't have any rot.
BTW I've lost small branches about 2"-4" before, and I've pruned them properly, and they all healed nicely with a nice, solid canker. No black spot on leaves, no major insect infestations that I can find.
Part of this may be my neglect of the tree... I hadn't fertilized it at all for about 8 years... just the occasional weed n feed on the lawn, maybe once a year at 50% of the recommended rate. But those "hollows" in the main limbs at the crotch of the tree have been there for years, even before I bought the house, although I'm guessing they're much worse now. This spring I researched and did a light surface application of the correct fertilizer on the lawn, reduced in amount by about 50% to be on the safe side. Then in late June I augured 2 rows of holes about 1' deep and 1.5" wide around the dripline, and applied 2/3 teaspoon of fertilizer in each hole (the correct amount according to the University of Vermont). In the past month I also sprayed a fungicide on the lilies that grow under the tree in about a 7' radius... I doubt that's related but it's the only thing that's changed in recent years that I can think of.
I live in upstate NY... no salt or anything like that is within 300' feet of the tree. Any help would be appreciated... it's an awesome tree and I'd like to save it if at all possible. I have photos if that will help. Thanks!
