I had a sugar maple die last year, 20” tree. This year I have a 30” sugar maple looking bad with some brown looking fungus on the side of it. About half of the limbs don’t have leafs on them. Does anybody have any ideas? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I have no clue. Just wondering if the fungus might be a symptom of the trees demise and not the root cause.
The red maples will get a whitish/greyish ladder mushroom growing on it when it is on its deathbed here. The wood inside is usually spalted and kinda soft and not so great for firewood most of the time. I think the spores are always attempting to grow but healthy bark is able to repel them. Many of the red maple that are dying here is from overcrowding - too many after a clear cut.
The leaves it does have look pretty healthy. Did the other one that died get the same fungus...I'm guessing the fungus is just opportunistic. Maybe your local co-op extension can help, be a shame to loose such a nice tree.
When you see the conks it generally isn't a good sign. As DaveGunter stated, your best bet is to get your co-op extension agent out to give you his impartial opinion. Regardless, I'd wait and see if the tree began to show signs of serious decline before I'd even think of removal. http://www.gfc.state.ga.us/community-forests/ask-the-arborist/FungalConksonTrees.pdf
I’m not sure about the first one that died. I usually don’t go into my woods after mushroom season till deer season. I didn’t realize the first one was dead till this spring and the bark is already falling off. The tree that looks like it isn’t doing so well is close to my barn so I noticed it. I have made a few trips into the woods this year to look for other hard maples in trouble and all looks ok. I’d say 80% of my woods is hard maple. I’m just concerned about them Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I can attest to this with a little data. I got a moisture meter recently, being brand new to indoor burning (owb convert as of this coming season) so I've been poking everything in sight. Sugar maple I css early this spring is down to 24-28%, but some I did early last spring just makes it at 18%. If I had the luxury of giving it another year, I would, but dry wood is in short supply here so it'll get into the stove. Next burning season should be easier, and the next easier still. Thankfully I've got enough put up that I'm working on year three or four depending on how much wood this new IS chews through, so everything from here out will be playing with house money. Regarding the sickness, your pictures look like the trees along the roadside here and in the surrounding villages, but I'm a less advanced state of decay. I'm told the sugar maple is very sensitive to car exhaust, road salt, etc and has a reduced life span in such an environment. Not sure if that applies to your situation, but food for thought maybe?
