Maple with nasty scar

13 years ago

Is there anything I can do to patch it in/cover it up? I hate to give up on this tree....but hubby has been considering replacing it. He wanted to get rid of it when this happened...and I wouldn't let him. 10 years ago our house was built, the young maple had already been planted....and the backhoe, when digging our basement, scraped it. I'd told them we could move the tree prior to all this if need be, but everyone said the tree was fine. Well, it wasn't. The scar wasn't so bad then, but of course as its grown, the scar has too. And, the tree is crooked. Hubby tied it up for 2 years, to an anchor in the ground, but it still leaned when he let it loose. Guess it will always lean....but is there anything we can do to help/cover up the scar. Will it cause any problems with the tree down the road?

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Comments (8)

Dan _Staley (5b Sunset 2B AHS 7)
13 years ago
Is there anything I can do to patch it in/cover it up?

No.

Will it cause any problems with the tree down the road?

Maybe, maybe not. Looks like the tree has tried to heal twice yet still has decent size and form. Maybe a couple closeups of the scar near the top might help a bit. Looks like the girls in the background of the first picture aren't too concerned.

I just did a large urban replanting project and got rid of a languishing tree with a smaller scar than that and the contractor had to point out he thought I made a mistake taking it out, as he thought it would heal...

Dan
Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis
13 years ago
That little lean is no problem. The scar is the tree encapsulating an old wound. A maple out in the middle of my front yard is growing around a wound. I have been peeking in looking for signs of rot. Figure at the very least it is more likely to end up hollow than a tree without a wound.

How far is it from your house? Any idea which cultivar t is? October Glory or something like that?

If it is close enough that it will be able to fall on your home I would plan on replacing it. If it is a smaller tree or far enough away then eventually it will probably grow over the wound and if you like the appearance so be it.
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I don't agree with some of what Ken says. The tree is significantly damaged in a way that rot is likely. Rot can significantly weaken the trunk and create a tree that is much more likely to fail. As the tree ages and grows, the rot is likely to spread and the tree may be more likely to collapse, especially in windy conditions. Whether the tree will be able to successfully encapsulate and block off the rot is an unknown, so a variety of outcomes is possible. It appears that the tree was planted incorrectly, and this has likely contributed to the problem your tree now faces. The exact, and complete, cause may be unknowable, but at least some of the problem (improper planting) is fairly clear. Where I do agree with Ken, is that there isn't much you can do, at this point, to "fix" the situation. Your choices at this point are to either wait and see and enjoy the tree while you can, or, cut it down and replace it (not necessarily in that order - you could plant a replacement and let it get a start before removing the existing tree). If the tree poses a danger to your home or safety, I would consider keeping an eye on it and removing it before it's likely to cause a problem.
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Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis
13 years ago
That little lean is no problem. The scar is the tree encapsulating an old wound. A maple out in the middle of my front yard is growing around a wound. I have been peeking in looking for signs of rot. Figure at the very least it is more likely to end up hollow than a tree without a wound.

How far is it from your house? Any idea which cultivar t is? October Glory or something like that?

If it is close enough that it will be able to fall on your home I would plan on replacing it. If it is a smaller tree or far enough away then eventually it will probably grow over the wound and if you like the appearance so be it.
dsieber
13 years ago
Looks like it is doing ok. Distance from house ok. But you need to be the judge of that.
famartin
13 years ago
That's a sizable scar, for sure. The trunk is likely weaker than it otherwise would be. Otherwise, the tree should do fine til it keels over, whenever that is. It could certainly last many decades despite that wound... no way to really know.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years ago
sorry to say.. but i am with hubby here...

you have ONE TREE in front of your house.. why do you want this one???

probably the best option.. being diplomatic.. is to plant a couple more .... so that when you come to understand that this one is not performing to expectations [i expect mine to NOT look like this] ... and then .. when you finally agree that it can go .. you already have the replacements in place ...

all that said .. this is the tree forum ... not the marriage forum.. IS THIS REALLY WHERE YOU WANT TO MAKE YOUR STAND????

is this tree so important to YOU .. that you cant make hubby happy and let him slaughter the beast .. and plant his queen a new tree???

really now.. he actually wants to do something to improve your castle.. and you are fighting him..

let ax man take care of it.. and move on ...

and well he is at it.. insist on a tree better than a maple.. i prefer oak.. but they might not be best for your area ... but that is your choice ...

was that a gang of malignant chickens spying on the photographer???

IMHO.. anything you can dream up ... is contrary to nature.. so leave it alone ... or cut it down ... and i dont really think.. that after ten years.. it is going to heal ... plus the lean .. blah blah ...

that is your dose of reality for today ... lol

good luck

ken
Dan _Staley (5b Sunset 2B AHS 7)
13 years ago
Yes, you certainly need more out front that's for sure. I like ken's idea of planting two and when they're sizable enough this one comes down. You could have two properly-placed shade trees and a couple ornamentals closer to the road and that front would be improved immensely, along with a few foundation shrubs (not lollipopped) and 100% improvement.

Dan
grullablue
Original Author
13 years ago
Ken,
I'm leaning towards agreeing with you....which is why I posted this. I'm "on the fence" so to speak. It's a nice tree when it's full of leaves....but at the moment, it's the focal point of the yard...and scarred and leaning...

I don't know what kind of maple it is, sorry.

I took close up pics of the scar, I have to get them loaded on the computer, then on photobucket, and I'll post them here.

I do agree, our yard is very plain and needs some work! We're not landscapers here....I just don't have an eye for that sort of thing, and although I enjoy the work, I don't know what to do at the moment! The foundation is planted with hostas, which have have only just started to peek up through the mulch. (the house faces north, so the the foundation gets no sun).

We have a nice big yard...where I stood to take this pic, there's about the same amount of space behind me before the road. I'm standing in a turn around area for our driveway....the driveway is T shaped. But aside from some large flowering shrubs along the road, it's pretty plain behind me too!

I am reconsidering my thoughts on the tree. I wanted to save it years ago. But the scar has gotten much worse through the years. The damage occurred 11 years ago now.

Thanks for all the input!
Angie

Maple with nasty scar

Comments (8)

Dan _Staley (5b Sunset 2B AHS 7)

Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis

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Dan _Staley (5b Sunset 2B AHS 7)

grullablue
Original Author

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Maple with nasty scar

Comments (8)

Dan _Staley (5b Sunset 2B AHS 7)

Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis

Related Discussions

Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis

dsieber

famartin

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

Dan _Staley (5b Sunset 2B AHS 7)

grullablueOriginal Author

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grullablue
Original Author