part of my Japanese maple is dead - Ask Extension
Hello. Last year, part of my young (15 years old) Japanese maple turned black up a limb and everything connected to it was dead. I cut off those lim...
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part of my Japanese maple is dead #400753
Asked May 18, 2017, 10:29 AM EDT
Hello. Last year, part of my young (15 years old) Japanese maple turned black up a limb and everything connected to it was dead. I cut off those limbs and hoped for the best. This spring another section of it is black and dead. Please see pictures below. I would be grateful for any and all advice and education on this. Thank you!
Montgomery County Maryland
Expert Response
Your first photo (left to right) shows a fungus growing through the bark. It's the black and white growth you see. This indicates that the trunk is infected and will eventually die if it is not already dead. Assuming these trunks are all connected, cut it off as soon as possible and perhaps you can prevent it from getting into the other trunks.
Do not leave a stub when you prune (as in the third photo.) Prune back to the branch collar, i.e. the raised area encircling where one branch grows out of a larger branch or trunk. Do not remove the collar. For more help with pruning: http://extension.umd.edu/sites/extension.umd.edu/files/_images/programs/hgic/Publications/HG84_Pruni...
The center photo shows a dead section which needs to be removed.(Maybe this is the same trunk as photo 1.)
The third photo shows a huge long wound. The tree has tried to seal it off so infection does not get in there, but it may not be successful.
All you can do is continue to remove dead areas. There is no cure.
ECN
Do not leave a stub when you prune (as in the third photo.) Prune back to the branch collar, i.e. the raised area encircling where one branch grows out of a larger branch or trunk. Do not remove the collar. For more help with pruning: http://extension.umd.edu/sites/extension.umd.edu/files/_images/programs/hgic/Publications/HG84_Pruni...
The center photo shows a dead section which needs to be removed.(Maybe this is the same trunk as photo 1.)
The third photo shows a huge long wound. The tree has tried to seal it off so infection does not get in there, but it may not be successful.
All you can do is continue to remove dead areas. There is no cure.
ECN
Thank you for your prompt response. Other websites say not to prune a Japanese Maple in spring as it is producing sap right now.
If the trunk and limbs are totally dead, is it better to cut it off now or leave things until the summer?
Best,
Eva
If the trunk and limbs are totally dead, is it better to cut it off now or leave things until the summer?
Best,
Eva
Only the living parts of the tree will produce sap when they are pruned. It is fine to prune out the dead limbs at any time of the year; they no longer produce sap.
CKC
CKC
