Japanese Maple Root Damage

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LouisvilleGrubber
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Japanese Maple Root Damage

Post by LouisvilleGrubber » January 5th, 2018, 11:02 am

This past Spring I built an outdoor kitchen. In the process I was going to lose a beautiful Japanese Maple that sat just on the edge of the build site. My contractor at the last minute decided the tree could be saved, however, in the process he cut off two major roots about 8 in below the surface, Not damaged, completely severed. They were probably 4-5 inches in diameter. There were also some smaller roots damaged. I almost had him go ahead and pull the tree so I wouldn't have to deal with a dead tree at the end of the summer, but the tree was so big and beautiful and provided perfect shade so I decided to give it a shot. I also had to remove about 1/4 of the tree (an entire section that started just above the ground). Much to my surprise and delight it survived a sweltering summer without so much as a wilting leaf. ALthough oddly, the tree has not dropped it's leaves even after these single digit temps we've had the past week.

The only "treatment" I gave the tree was heavy water and it probably soaked in some milo and N from my end of year turf treatments. My gut told me N was the last thing this tree needed, but it sat right where I was planting TTTF on the damage from the construction process so it was hard to avoid.

Any suggestions for Spring to help her get back on her feet?

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andy10917
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Re: Japanese Maple Root Damage

Post by andy10917 » January 5th, 2018, 1:01 pm

Many Japanese Maples did not shed their leaves this Fall - it was a weird Fall. There is a thread about that specific topic that I created.

LouisvilleGrubber
Posts: 186
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Re: Japanese Maple Root Damage

Post by LouisvilleGrubber » January 7th, 2018, 10:40 am

I remember that thread now. I guess it’s just now beginning to seem odd down here. I’m much more concerned about what to do in the spring. From my experience hitting a Japanese maple with the weed whacker can cause the tree some stress. I have no idea how it’s surviving the amputation. Maybe I’ll search around for a site specific to trees and see what I can learn.

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