Japanese Red Leaf Maple Thin :(

[abbeydaisy]

I have a 5-10 year old Japanese Red Leaf Maple tree. It looks fine except that there are no interior leaves....it does not look full. I am concerned that it is dying slowly!

It sits in full fun, no other trees around it or over it....it is the center focal point of our front yard.

There are no breaks or tears in the bark.

All interior branches are bald...only the large branches have leaves on the exterior of the tree......no leaves in the interior.

I have searched and find no information on what could be the cause.

Appreciate any guidance ...thoughts

 

[Elmore]

Post some pics if possible. If the interior branchs without leaves are dead break them off or prune them out. Pics please.

 

[rbtree]

Interior thinning is normal with Japanese maple.

 

[abbeydaisy]

Pictures

I keep waiting for the tree to fill out ...it looks sparse to me.

I have attached 2 pictures. They show that all the interior leaves are gone and that leaves only exist on the last 12-20 inces of each branches. The tree looks thin

Is this normal?

 

[abbeydaisy]

Thank you for taking a look ...I will take more pictures tonight.

No chemicals have been added to the area nor any runoff. I have 4" of Pine needles surrounding the base of the tree. One change I made but doubt if it would matter is: I have a sprinkler system in the front yard to water flowers/plants, I turned off last year from spraying the area under the tree. The tree is approx 10+ years old. So I thought the roots were establsihed and it woudl not need a little sprinkler system.

I do have a family of chipmunks in the front yard. since the tree is in a "planter"; raised tier bed.....could the chipmunks be destroying the root system?

 

[Elmore]

Just a guess

Check the planting depth to see if it is too deep. Root crown should be at or very near the grade. Covered by no more than about 1/4" of mineral soil. If too deep it may be hampered in growth. Pretty large tree but it can be adjusted if too deep.

 

[abbeydaisy]

Maybe it is voles.......

No missing hostas....actually I just dug up several to give away.

How would I know If I have voles? How do you get rid of them? I would love to also get a vole patrol ! they are adorable!!! Unfortunately I am allergic to cats But I have 3 dogs that love rodents

 

[abbeydaisy]

Picture of tree base attached

Attached is a picture of the tree's base attached.

Thoughts.....

 

[Elmore]

Hard to see any flare. A tree of that size should show considerable flare. Better check depth of planting and raise it up a bit if too deep. Nice looking wood...I love Japanese Maples.

 

[treeseer]

See Buying and New Tree Planting in the link below. Self-strangulation can cause that sefere thinness. The leaves look brown to me--do I need glasses?

 

[Elmore]

...The leaves look brown to me--do I need glasses?

Guy...those are kittens and they're black.
Seriously...are Japanese Beetle giving your tree problems? I have a similar looking tree and the combination of drought and Japanese Beetles are giving it a similar appearance but check your tree's planting depth.

 

[treeseer]

Seriously...are Japanese Beetle giving your tree problems? .

They are bad this year. I use sevin on a willow, their favorite and not an attraction for beneficials.

 

[abbeydaisy]

I have attached 2 more pictures. I do see some evidence of Japanese beetles, however, not to the degree to cause such defoliation. As I looked at the tree I noticed that right above a new sprig growing out there was a dying twig. See picture "leave with dying twig". In the picture you will see a dead twig to the right that is attached where there was once a spring of leaves. To the left a spring of leaves. I believe that the "death" continues downward until al of the branch eventually dies.

I have also removed all mulch, pine needles from the base. I attached a picture so you can fully see the base of the tree. The tree is old....10+ years; I don't think I can move it at this point.

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

The branches look like they are dying back because of a problem with the roots or trunk.
There is what looks like a girdling injury to the base of the trunk. Was something chewing on it, or is it mechanical damage like from a weed eater? This could explain why it's dying back.
Is it girdled all the way around?

 

[treeseer]

"The branches look like they are dying back because of a problem with the roots or trunk. "

A little tip dieback is not uncommon, for a variety of reasons.

"There is what looks like a girdling injury to the base of the trunk. Was something chewing on it, or is it mechanical damage like from a weed eater? "

Mike this looks like fresh injury from soilmoving tool--trowel? I nick em once in a while too. :blush:

"you can fully see the base of the tree." I still cannot see the primary/buttress roots, can you Mike?

 

[abbeydaisy]

I just removed 7-10" on pine needles that I put around the tree to retain moisture. Thought I was doing the tree a favor


The bark looks like the picture 3/4 around the base of the tree.

What can I do now?

Will it heal itself?

 

[abbeydaisy]

Do you remember seeing plastic twine or metal wire around the trunk where the damage is that may have been removed?

Answer: no nothing, no fence, twine or wires have ever been around the tree. Can't be a trimmer since the tree is in a raised tier bed with no grass ever in the bed.

What would be your guess as to what caused the damage? Weedeaters(string trimmers)? Dog chain around the tree?

Answer: Pine needles kept moisture in causing base to rot. Insects then invaded.

I removed the pine needles and won't put them there again.

Will the tree live?
What else should I do?

 

[Kneejerk Bombas]

When the pine straw was up against the tree it was perfet habitat for rodents, and tree bark can be quite tastey when there's nothing else to eat.
The area of injury I can see looks like it is an older injury, maybe more than a year.
Girdling injuries can be very hard for a tree to repair if they are unbroken, but if there are a few areas where the cambium is still connected, the tree might pull through.
Water the tree throughly and then let the soil just dry out before watering again. Check for soil moisture by poking a stick or finger into the soil.
Don't fertilize.
Don't trim any live branches.
When the soil is moist, very gently use a spoon to remove a ring of soil from around the base of the tree about 2" deep and 2" wide. We need to determine if the planting depth is proper and if there is any more damage. Once exposed post a picture, we'll let you know what to do next. Try to get closer pictures of the damage.
If it's real bad, you may want to look into doing a few bridge grafts. An internet search will explain what this is all about.
Know any Master Gardeners, or Arborists that have done some grafting?

 

[abbeydaisy]

Thank YOU!!!!

This has been the best site ever. Thank you all for your advise and council. If I had not had your direction I would have been lost.

I ended up calling an arborist since the tree's trunk was damaged. It's roots were wrapping around the tree (which now have been re-directed), re-set the watering parameters, no mulch around the tree for the little critters to eat the bark, and now on a fertilization program.

I learned more about trees than I ever would have without all of you

Thank you very much. Appreciate all of your time and responses!