cavity in a maple tree

[Kneejerk Bombas]

The Seer is talking about the soil being piled up too high on the trunk. Look at a tree growing in the forest, it will have a nice flare as the tree enters the ground. This tree looks like a telephone pole going straight into he ground.
There is nothing to do to the wound that is known to help, although that doesn't stop people from making things up, so in the absence of evidence it's best to let nature take it's course.
The one thing that we do know, is it will help to improve the health of the tree. Number one is to carefully remove the soil back down to the original grade.
Then, you could try to improve the soil by aerating with a core aerator and spreading some compost around.
It would also help to create a nice chip bed out to a few feet past the drip line of the tree.
If you know the soil pH and it's high or low, adjust that.
Water during dry periods.
Find a puff ball mushroom, bring it to the tree, and set it on the windward side of the new chipbed.
Do not remove any foliage from the tree. Leaves make food for the tree, keep every leaf.
Resist the temptation to fill the cavity or to poke around in it.
Don't put bug spray, paint, or anything else on or around the wound.
Do not fertilize the tree unless the soil has been tested, then only apply what is deficient.
The hole may look like it's the end of the world for the tree, but if the tree is kept reasonably healthy, it will grow over the wound and completely close up. This will take time. Water will go in the hole, along with ants and other insects. Silver Maples are fast growing. They add wood at an amazing rate, and what you can't see is the tree has set up physical and chemical barriers to stop the rot from spreading into the rest of the tree. These barriers can break down if the tree is overly mature or highly stressed, but with a little care this young tree should outlast you and your customer.

 

[rb_in_va]

Mike,
All of that makes good sense to me, except for the puffball mushroom. What does that do?

BTW, I forwarded your advice on the tree owner for his information. You speak much more wisely about tree biology than I.

 

[treeseer]

r the puffball mushroom. What does that do?

Search Pisolithus tinctorius. thanks for the reminder Mike; I saw some puffballs popping up in the lawn the other day. I'm gonna go out and pick me some mycorhizal fun guy!:jester:

 

[rb_in_va]

Search Pisolithus tinctorius. thanks for the reminder Mike; I saw some puffballs popping up in the lawn the other day. I'm gonna go out and pick me some mycorhizal fun guy!:jester:

So it helps the soil I guess? I got this from a site I googled.

"Not much to look at, but mycorrhizal and very beneficial, greatly aiding in getting trees established in strip-mine areas and other poor soils. It has been used in nurseries where pine seedlings are started in soils mixed with mycelium or spores of the fungus. The resulting mycorrhizal relationship greatly improves the survival of the pines when used in reforestation projects of poor soils such as occur after strip mining. It has also been used in making brown to black dyes."

 

[jonseredbred]

I was under the impression that copper would kill the tree?


Yes No? Is it pulled out soon enough to not harm the tree?

we have been using stainless steel, with no problems.

 

[Ekka]

I was under the impression that copper would kill the tree?


Yes No? Is it pulled out soon enough to not harm the tree?

Here's a poll on it, all BS! But I suppose like any toxicity thing if you put 10,000 of them in it might have an effect.

http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=23821

 

[Canyon Angler]

Here's a poll on it, all BS! But I suppose like any toxicity thing if you put 10,000 of them in it might have an effect.

http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=23821

Ha! Interesting! I remember my Dad saying that copper nails would kill a tree; I guess he heard it from the same place everyone else has!

I've also heard about copper sulfate used to kill aquatic vegetation...don't get caught, though.

Thanks, Eric.

 

[treeseer]

"Not much to look at, but mycorrhizal and very beneficial, greatly aiding in getting trees established in strip-mine areas and other poor soils. It has been used in nurseries where pine seedlings are started in soils mixed with mycelium or spores of the fungus. The resulting mycorrhizal relationship greatly improves the survival of the pines when used in reforestation projects of poor soils such as occur after strip mining. It has also been used in making brown to black dyes."

This was based on the work of Don Marx when he was here at NCSU. Based on growing pines in stripmine soil, he left NCSU to start Plant Health Care Inc. P. tinctorius can do a lot to made roots work, but you can't do a lot for that maple until you Find the Flare.

 

[Ekka]

Guy, here's scenario for you.

What if the tree has survived for say 5 to 7 years with a 12" upward grade change. There's no sign of decay or die off, in fact quite the opposite.

You dig down to find the flare, all is good, no problem, but notice the entire area as far as the canopy has undergone the same grade change.

In your digging you notice that a good volume of fine hair like roots are well established in this new grade.

You know that removing that amount of soil will remove most of the feeder roots.

I had one exactly like this, and left it. I figured the work would do more damage than good. The species was spotted gum (Corymbia maculata), a heavy hard wood.

 

[treeseer]

Different continent, typical scenario.

Absolutely, those advcntitious roots are used by the tree. they shoul only be removed if a higher gain will be realized. At a minimum the trunk should be cleared. Beyond that take care. Protocols for this root work are being drawn up in the field.

 

[Ekka]

I didn't clear the trunk either as it was a clay/shale soil which drained poorly. It would have formed a well around the trunk to hold water so I covered it back up.

Explained to the customers to dig it out once a year to check.

I was thinking about applying some sort of chemical to protect it but didn't know where to start, figured it looked after itself so long probably best left alone.

Showed the customer pics of different symptoms of fungal decay and to keep an eye out but I think this tree will be OK. It even had nice same colour bark as the rest of the trunk.

 

[treeseer]

I didn't clear the trunk either as it was a clay/shale soil which drained poorly. It would have formed a well around the trunk to hold water so I covered it back up.

Why not leave it cleared, and dig a drainage trench on the downhill side? Yes you'd damage some little roots, but that's a small price to pay.

Explained to the customers to dig it out once a year to check.

o yeah like that's going to happen.

Showed the customer pics of different symptoms of fungal decay and to keep an eye out

o yeah like that's going to happen.

but I think this tree will be OK. It even had nice same colour bark as the rest of the trunk.

Sounds like a tree that needs an annual look by an arborist. Did you try to sell monitoring? Small investment on owner's part, since it would include a look at the whole property in the hour, and a snip etc where needed, time permitting.

Annual checkups/mtc decrease liability for both parties.

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

we have been using stainless steel, with no problems.

May I ask what you are basing the work on? Is there some indication that drilling a second hole in the tree and adding a tube does anything beneficial?
Also, do you charge the customer, or tell them that there is no research to prove it does any good?
Anytime you break through existing CODIT walls, you are opening the tree up to unchecked decay! That's why you shouldn't clean out cavities, for fear of breaking through the walls. When you break a wall from inside a cavity, there is no trigger for the tree to set up new walls, you just wrote the tree a death sentence.
The only thing I can think, is you're inserting tubes to harvest sap for syrup. Luckfully they're usually not drilled into cavities.

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

Why not leave it cleared, and dig a drainage trench on the downhill side? Yes you'd damage some little roots, but that's a small price to pay.

I wouldn't think it would fill up too often, being as you have such an arid climate, but you could get the job done in a hurry and do little root damage with an air spade. If the trench is objectionable, add a drain tile and cover it. I'd leave the trunk exposed.