Red Maple problem

[Johnnyru]

I have 2 red maple trees in my backyard in Central Florida. They are approx. 10 years old. There are areas of dead leaves all over the tree in clumps. They are brown with black areas on them. They are not curled. They occur mainly near the end of a branch. While these leaves are dead in clumps, the leaves behind them on the same branch look healthy. I don't see any evidence of insect damage. I don't know if this is a disease or an infestation of some kind. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Thank You

John

 

[Gypo Logger]

If you suspect insects, hang a couple of bird feeders in the tree. The birds will run defence for it.

 

[Johnnyru]

If you suspect insects, hang a couple of bird feeders in the tree. The birds will run defence for it.

I have a bird feeder in one tree and no extra activity from the birds. They just come and feed on the bird seed.

 

[Raintree]

Can you post a few good pics of the disorder?

 

[ATH]

For the black spots, look up tar spot and see if that looks like it.

For the small brown leaves: could be several things... For the age and species it is quite common to have stem girdling roots from being planted too deep. Can you post a picture of the trunk of the tree where it enters the ground?

 

[Johnnyru]

I will post some pics tomorrow,Thursday... thanks

 

[Johnnyru]

As you can see there are clumps of these dead leaves all over the tree. Thanks for your time

 

[Rudedog]

If you suspect insects, hang a couple of bird feeders in the tree. The birds will run defence for it.

Man.... that's a good idea. Thanks.

 

[Raintree]

Interesting, my first guess would be a disease, possible nectria fungi. Need to see the transition zone on the twig between the live & dead tissue.
Looking for something that may look like this...

 

[Johnnyru]

Interesting, my first guess would be a disease, possible nectria fungi. Need to see the transition zone on the twig between the live & dead tissue.
Looking for something that may look like this...

There's nothing that looks like the pic on the right but the left pic looks about right. There are no
leaves on the sections between live and dead leaves on my tree. I will post more pics tomorrow thanks Raintree!

 

[Johnnyru]

Interesting, my first guess would be a disease, possible nectria fungi. Need to see the transition zone on the twig between the live & dead tissue.
Looking for something that may look like this...

Here is a good sample

 

[Raintree]

This is still a mystery, not seeing nectria. John the only thing I see that's unusual are those dark coffee like stains on the twig. Is the stain from a wound, insect hole or just seeped through the bark? Can you shave off the bark & see if it's stained into the cambium.

 

[Johnnyru]

This is still a mystery, not seeing nectria. John the only thing I see that's unusual are those dark coffee like stains on the twig. Is the stain from a wound, insect hole or just seeped through the bark? Can you shave off the bark & see if it's stained into the cambium.

No it's not stained into the cambium. It's just on the bark. Could it be mold? Also had an infestation of what looked like tiny black caterpillars and they even got into the house this summer.

 

[Raintree]

I think what we are looking at is a symptom of a disorder up stream in the trees vascular system. Possible early stages of verticillium wilt. These types of diseases are opportunistic and prey on weak & stressed trees. It would be important to ID the pathogen however it's more important to understand why the tree is vulnerable. This leads us back to ATH's post about proper planting & girdling roots. Post up a pic of the stump area.

 

[ATH]

This is an odd one for sure. On that last twig you posted: where the twig turns from gray to brown...get a couple of close-ups of that on both sides. Shave off the bark before and after that and post a couple of pictures.

 

[Johnnyru]

Don't have original twig. Here is another one front and back

 

[Raintree]

Good pics, that's just what we needed to see. What you have is Cytospora fungi causing dieback on your maple twigs, this also explains the ooze stains. I usually deal with this canker on evergreens. No cure, prune out diseased limbs, disinfect tools between cuts. http://plantclinic.cornell.edu/factsheets/cytosporacankerprnamentals.pdf

Now we need to understand why your maple is stressed & vulnerable to invasion. The root collar needs to be exposed so time to start digging.

Need to see where the roots meet the trunk.
Also what are you using for lawn care treatments?

 

[Johnnyru]

Good pics, that's just what we needed to see. What you have is Cytospora fungi causing dieback on your maple twigs, this also explains the ooze stains. I usually deal with this canker on evergreens. No cure, prune out diseased limbs, disinfect tools between cuts. http://plantclinic.cornell.edu/factsheets/cytosporacankerprnamentals.pdf

Now we need to understand why your maple is stressed & vulnerable to invasion. The root collar needs to be exposed so time to start digging.

Need to see where the roots meet the trunk.
Also what are you using for lawn care treatments?

Thanks a lot Raintree. We did have an extreme amount of rain this summer. That might be the cause. We have sand for soil here in Florida. I have Trugreen lawn service monthly. I'm unable to dig so I'll have to hire someone. Thanks for all your help! You also ATH!

 

[ATH]

I'd suggest you have somebody do a root collar excavation with air equipment. The 2 usual tools used for that are an Air Spade or an AirKnife. These are essentially both the same so it doesn't matter which. Air excavation will expose the root collar and can be used to correct the planting depth without damaging the bark on the tree. Sand should blow away pretty easily!