Dying Red Maple Tree - Ask Extension
Our red maple tree is rapidly dying. At first we thought it was lightening strike because of the bark splitting, but now it has growths in several pla...
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Dying Red Maple Tree #837074
Asked June 22, 2023, 4:24 PM EDT
Our red maple tree is rapidly dying. At first we thought it was lightening strike because of the bark splitting, but now it has growths in several places. There’s also insect damage including possible termites near the bottom? Is it too far gone to save? We have a second tree close to this one and hope you can help us save that one? I have more photos available. Thank you for your help.
St. Mary's County Maryland
Expert Response
Yours is a venerable, old Japanese Maple tree. It has beautiful form and we can see why you'd want to save it.
Unfortunately, its time has come. The lack of leaves and the dieback of branches shows it's in an advanced state of decline.
This page can explain more:
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/how-do-you-decide-when-remove-tree
We don't think termites are present, or that insect pests are to blame. We see some signs of boring insects drilling into the tree in the third photo, and the sawdust-like shavings below that you notices are frass. These insects are present but not responsible for the demise, but arrive toward the end of the life cycle. That area shows a very large area of girdling roots, which maples in general are prone to. Japanese maples tend to be shallow rooted and we can see areas on the ground where roots have been mowed over for many years as well.
Here is our page that includes the many things that can lead to stress over long periods of time, including girdling roots.
If you want to show us the other tree nearby we can take a look, but if it is important to you, you might consider contacting an ISA- certified arborist, who is a tree health expert to come an do an on-site evaluation of all the factors.
Christine
Unfortunately, its time has come. The lack of leaves and the dieback of branches shows it's in an advanced state of decline.
This page can explain more:
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/how-do-you-decide-when-remove-tree
We don't think termites are present, or that insect pests are to blame. We see some signs of boring insects drilling into the tree in the third photo, and the sawdust-like shavings below that you notices are frass. These insects are present but not responsible for the demise, but arrive toward the end of the life cycle. That area shows a very large area of girdling roots, which maples in general are prone to. Japanese maples tend to be shallow rooted and we can see areas on the ground where roots have been mowed over for many years as well.
Here is our page that includes the many things that can lead to stress over long periods of time, including girdling roots.
If you want to show us the other tree nearby we can take a look, but if it is important to you, you might consider contacting an ISA- certified arborist, who is a tree health expert to come an do an on-site evaluation of all the factors.
Christine
