Please help... sun scald or frost crack in Maple tree.

15 years ago

Hi everyone,

I have 5 columnar norway maples in my backyard and 2 of them have cracks near the ground. One is worse that the other. Should I do anything about this? They've been cracked for a couple of years and seem to do fine otherwise.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Here is a link that might be useful: My Trees

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Comments (9)

Dan _Staley (5b Sunset 2B AHS 7)
15 years ago
Yup. That's what they do. Nothing for you to do but hope infection doesn't invade.

Dan
sea_dragon
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks for your reply. I'm just very nervous about losing the trees with the trunks spit wide open like this. These trees provide privacy from the house right behind me and it will be very bad if I lose them. The strange thing is that only 2 out of 5 trees has this even though that are planted in the same positions along the back.

Would you say it looks like sun scald or is it a frost crack? Not that it makes much difference I suppose.
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Wow. Great thread. Not to negate anyoneÃ¯Â¿Â½s theories, but to reiterate previous comments, summarized, "It could be anything." By the way, I was not a student but have read most of ShigoÃ¯Â¿Â½s writings and am a firm believer. The picture that is attached is of a shingle oak in my yard, Q. imbricaria. I have had the good fortune of knowing this tree from youth, as I was the buyer for the line out stock for the nursery at the time. Is this a picture of lightning damage, freeze crack, sunscald or cultivator damage? By the way, the top two or three feet of the damage has been overgrown and hidden by the bark. None of the above. Before this tree was dug, and before the damage was evident I purchased it and planted it in my yard. The damaged side of the tree had faced north at the growing area, and being an oak was not likely to sustain sunscald. I noticed the damage forming the year after planting. What you are seeing is hail damage from the year before I purchased the tree, so severe that it killed the bark layer. The point here is that "distance diagnoses" (thank you, dan staley) can never be sure Ã¯Â¿Â½ get a credible arborist to look at it and the damage and make recommendations. hortster
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@jlcjlr - “decided to try the Fireglow…I’ll be planting one in full sun and one in afternoon shade”. That was back in 2010…13 years ago…curious to know how your Fireglow JM’s are doing now? I’m considering a Fireglow for my property, but I don’t have any mature trees so it would be getting full sun the majority of the day in zone 7A in the mid-Atlantic region. Worried that the leaves would scorch. Also, how is the fall color on them? I’m looking for really bright scarlet red fall color…the kind of red that stops you in your tracks with the sun setting behind it! Thanks…would love to get an update!
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It appears to be some delayed transplant shock - not fatal but not necessarily a good thing, either. First, you already know this but I'm going to repeat........planting a JM in June in a hot summer climate that is undergoing an extended drought is just not a great idea. Period. The tree is put at an immediate disadvantage by doing so. A reaction by the tree to this stressful situation should not be unexpected. Second, I know it seems counterintuitive, but pruning off the roots is exactly what you should NOT have done. Those fine feeder roots are how the tree accesses soil moisture and nutrients - the larger roots are only for anchorage. So the tree is now working on a second disadvantage - trauma to the rootball (JM roots are very sensitive to disturbance) and a lack of feeder roots. What I'd suggest you should have done is remove as much of the soil on the top of the rootball as possible to expose the burlap, cut any ties (and gently remove) and then unwrap the burlap surrounding the trunk and remove as much from the top of the rootball as possible, leaving the sides - with fine roots growing through - intact. Cutting off these roots has given the tree a major setback. In fact, the nursery I am associated with now nullifies their guarantee policy if removal of the burlap disturbs the rootball excessively......it is that much of a disruption to the plant, especially during the middle of the growing season. Finally, I'd want to know about your watering routine. Using an automated sprinkler system to water a newly planted tree is usually not a great idea. In fact, I discourage it. Most systems come on for a few minutes once or twice a day - this is not enough water for a new tree, particularly one of that size. And you can't tell just by looking at the surface of the soil or even down a couple inches if the soil is adequately moist down to a sufficient depth - it may appear adequately moist on the surface but be dry as a bone further down. Watering by hand, with the hose on a low trickle, for an extended period of time as often as necessary is a much better approach. The water needs to penetrate down into the soil profile at least to the depth of the bottom of the rootball and only low and slow will accomplish this sort of irrigation. A drip system or soaker could accomplish the same thing, but not a sprinkler system. So you've planted at possibly the worst time of year, you've cut off a major portion of the tree's feeder roots that supply its moisture needs and your watering program is not very suitable. Not a huge surprise the tree is reacting poorly :-) All you can do at this point in time is correct your watering practices and hopefully adequate water and cooler fall temperatures will encourage some new root development. I believe this to be recoverable but it may not be obvious until next spring and how well the tree leafs out at that time. Did it come with a warranty?
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JS, the height of rootball may have no bearing on proper planting height. Depending on that parameter is the ticket to failure, albeit, a slow-motion failure, as the too-deep tree gradually starts to have crown rot issues. Please do take the time-what, maybe another five minutes,-to carefully peel back the soil on the top of the rootball, taking care, of course, to not nick up the trunk. Then, see where the true root flare is and plant such that that feature is just slightly above finish grade. You see, small tractors pull cultivating equipment down the rows in a tree nursery for weed control, in the process often heaping much soil on top of what had been a pretty good planting depth. Most nursery guys pay no attention to this so it's on you. And don't use the swollen graft area as a guide-the root flare will be further down. Now please believe me-why would I lie-we have had B&B trees come in where as much as 18 inches of soil had to be removed off the top of the root ball to find this root flare. Bad, bad practice, but for whatever reason, the industry is stubborn and does not want to improve in this area. Meanwhile, the ANZI nursery standards have been adjusted to point out this issue. Go by that, not some guy who doesn't give a damn. And if you've pre-dug the holes, they may easily be too deep already. Usually are. +Om
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
15 years ago
first.. they will heal themselves.. anything you dream up.. is contrary to nature .... so dont get any bright ideas of how lonely old you.. can do it better than mother nature ...

now.. talk to me about planting depth .. and reflection of sun off all that stonework ...

why do they look like telephone poles .. going straight into the earth.. where is the trunk flare????? loosen some of that mulch.. and find the root flare.. and take a few more pix ...

while you are out there .. tell us about how the sun moves across that patio and rocks.. and where the sun is.. according to the scars ... and you might want to add prevailing winter wind direction ...

to my use of the words.. sun scald is frost crack.. they are the same thing ...

the sun.. heats one side of the plant ... repeatedly .. all winter long.. while the other side.. remains frozen .. or the bark goes back and forth from freeze to thaw... as the sun works across that heat retaining patio ....

so what caused it.. was it the sun.. or the cold.. frankly it was both ... over.. and over.. all winter long ... not surprising that damage would develop ....

and it probably didnt happen this winter ... perhaps the winter after transplant ????? when the plants were at the height of stress ...

come next winter .... block the sun from the trunks ... so the trunks stay completely dormant... without the back and forth ... and that will help ...

regardless.. you have to figure out if there is planting depth problems ... the fact that the crack.. if i recall right [closed pix already] .. goes right into the ground... it usually doesnt ... because the root flare would stop it ....

good luck

ken
brandon7 TN_zone7
15 years ago
Sea Dragon, I noticed this is your first post in the tree forum. What Ken's saying is right, even though it does sound a little ornery. He means well, he just has a unique way of wording it.

Ken, "so don't get any bright ideas of how lonely old you.. can do it better than mother nature" sounds kind of ornery!
sea_dragon
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks for your comments. I do appreciate them.

Yeah, this was my first post here, but I've been on here quite a few times before joining reading on different topics. Nice forum.

Anyway, about the trees. I will take some pics and Ken suggested. Everything is covered in snow again so I'll wait until later this week when it melts.

The rock in the "ditch" is new as of this past September. The trees have been in place for 3 years now. Of the 2 trees that are cracked, one crack is facing the fence, and the other is facing away from the fence, almost the exact opposite direction, which I find strange.

The trees and fence face basically south-east so there is sun there from morning till late afternoon when the fence and then the huge house behind us blocks the sun.

Even though they are cracked, the trees fill in nicely each year and look really healthy otherwise. In fact, they've grown a lot since I planted them. I'd say they've doubled their size.

Thank again for the help.

Ken (yes, another Ken. LOL)
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
15 years ago
ornery .. pshaw ... lol

it is meant to be ornery .. IF they are thinking about painting.. or cementing.. or whatever else they heard through the proverbial grapevine ....

sounds like it they were pretty big transplants to start with .. sounds like the injury very well may have happened at ball and burlap stage [extreme stress] .. or happened at planting.. again.. supreme stress ... it make no sense .. otherwise.. that it is occurring against the fence ... unless sun is reflecting off the fence in winter ....

smaller transplants.. would be less stressed in the process ... and PERHAPS would have avoided the issue ... IMHO ....

and digging a new ditch near a recent transplant.. might not have helped ... but you gotta do.. what you gotta do ....

but lets still see how deep they are planted... or how high they are mulched ....

ken
sea_dragon
Original Author
15 years ago
I should clarify a couple of things...

The drainage ditch was there before the trees. The house is 5 years old and the yard and ditch were created at that time. The trees were planted 3 years ago. They were not large transplants. They were not ball and burlap, but were in containers. They were about 7 feet tall when I planted them. Now they are approx. 12 feet I'd say. The cracks developed after the first full year.

I don't have any strange plans for the trees like regarding cementing or anything like that. I'm just a little puzzled and concerned as to why only 2 trees have this problem and the other 3 trees have no signs of cracking, even though they are planted the same way. I've planted literally hundreds of trees, shrubs etc. in my time for myself and for others. This is the first time I've experienced cracks like this hence my posting here.

Thanks,
Ken
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
15 years ago
potted 7 foot trees????

probably not grown in those pots.. so they were ripped from mother earth .. stuck in the pot .. and sold to you ...

that was the first stressor ...

then you planted them .. second stressor ...

at which time the damage was done.. is impossible to say .... IMHO.. the injury could have been a year before you bought it .... it just didnt APPEAR.. until after you planted it ...

i too have planted hundreds of trees ... and this happens rather frequently ... i blame mother nature.. not me ... lol ...

if you have that much experience.. then IMHO .. it happened BEFORE you ever got your hands on it ...

often.. others with less experience are reading posts ... i didnt really thing you have any devious fix-it plan ... but i added the rest .. just to dissuade others from OVER LOVING THEIR TREES TO DEATH ...

yours will be fine ...

plant some tallish annuals in front of the scar.. .. out of sight.. out of mind ...

keep planting.. and good luck
ken
darrenpmc_hotmail_com
12 years ago
I was told that tin foil was suppose to help... that's not true???

Please help... sun scald or frost crack in Maple tree.

Comments (9)

Dan _Staley (5b Sunset 2B AHS 7)

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Please help... sun scald or frost crack in Maple tree.

Comments (9)

Dan _Staley (5b Sunset 2B AHS 7)

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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

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