Maple Stem Discoloration

Paulpash

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Please take a look at the pics and give your opinion. If treatment is needed can you please state what it would be ?
 

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0soyoung

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That black color is dead cambium. Those white things might be fungal fruiting bodies (I've never seen white ones on JMs before, only the orange bodies of nectria). I really cannot tell cause and effect from he pictures; the cambial death could be because of the fungus or the fungus is an after effect of the cambial death. I've only seen this kind of die-back from letting the tree get too dry - the sunny/windy side gets dessicated and dies back in a fashion similar to what I see in your pictures.

About all I can say with confidence is that you've got a seriously sick tree.
 

discusmike

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The black can't be good, probalbly going to get dieback, or worse, what do the roots look like?
 

discusmike

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garywood

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The maple appears to be arakawa or nishiki gawa so the white "scale" would be immature bark dying from the pseudomonas. No hope for the infected parts but if the tree is strong enough it can wall off the infected part and grow below it. If you do any work on the tree, MAKE SURE to sterilize your tools before working on another tree.
 
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Dan W.

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I guess I responded on the wrong thread...lol

MACH5 took care of the Crataegus link though. :)

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Here's my original post on your other thread:

Try this post: http://crataegus.com/2011/11/29/read-this-if-you-grow-japanese-maple/

On the Little Princess part... I just bought a JM that was listed as Kiyohime "Little Princess", do you know if yours is a variety of Kiyohime or a separate cultivar? I can't find any listings that explain exactly what it is....lol
 

Paulpash

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Thank you from the input - much appreciated.

The article was very useful and I think it resembles the MO of pseudomonas quite closely. The pics on Michael's blog do resemble many of the branches on my tree, especially the the white raised mottling around the purply black dead patches.

MACH - I love your maples btw - always look forward to your threads / progressions!

OK plan of action then - if you guys want to add to it or suggest other preventative measures I am all ears. I'm just writing it so I am clear in my head the way to go:

1. Move the plant into a cold garage and keep it on the dry side over Winter. This disease flourishes in the damp cool months of Winter.

2. Totally clear the soil of debris and bin it.

3.Completely drench the plant (stems / soil) with copper sulphate to eliminate an spores on the bark or soil surface.

3. Mix up a sterilising solution - 1 part water to 3 parts bleach. Branch cutters will be left in the solution 5 mins between every cut. Cut out the infected tissue and bin it.

4. Same as 3 after each cut so that the cut area gets a drench of copper sulphate too. Seal all cuts with vaseline.

5. Treat at monthly intervals with follow up spraying

6. Pray :)

EDIT: Just an interesting fact: Pseudomonas has a necrotising effect on bark due to lowering it's anti freeze properties, making die back as a result of cold weather conditions more likely.
 
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