Maple Leaf Damage

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Hammbone81
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Maple Leaf Damage

Post by Hammbone81 » May 28th, 2021, 10:48 pm

I just noticed this on my young maple tree. Not sure how old the tree is, house is 3yrs old, tree is about 12ft tall with 2.5in trunk.

I also just noticed June Bugs are out. Is that what this damage is from? Something else?

What prevents further damage? Bayer 3-in-1? Something else?
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MorpheusPA
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Re: Maple Leaf Damage

Post by MorpheusPA » May 29th, 2021, 1:03 am

Yep, you've got a nibbler, although unless you catch it in the act, I can't tell you what it is. It looks more like really minor gypsy moth damage, but you'd definitely know if you had those.

If that's the level of damage, however, it's in the "ignore" range. Deciduous leaves are built to accept modest damage during the year, and that's practically nothing in terms of area. I don't see any problems with surrounding leaves.

If it gets much worse, a treatment with 3-in-1 might be called for, or BT (bacterial treatment) to kill any pests damaging the tree. I'd suggest starting with the latter first as it's less invasive.

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