Need help with Crimson Queen trunk damage.

Can anyone tell me what to do or what happened to the trunk on my Crimson Queen? It looks like the outer bark peeled back and left the inside exposed. It is on the north side of the tree and it wasn't chewed on by any animal.

I am new to growing Japanese Maples. I live in Illinois (zone 5) and this happened in the spring. It started out only being 1 inch long but is now about 8 inches. Thr tree was sheltered with burlap over the winter and bloomed beautifully all year long. I also sheltered it this winter and am awaiting spring to see if it survived.

I complained to the nursery where I bought it and they gave me an extended guarantee till the spring. However, they don't act like they will replace it, and if it doesn't die completely I think that I am going to have a hard time returning it. With my luck it will make it through the winter and die in the summer.

Any ideas?

japmaple the picture is pretty blurry - looks like the bark split and seems to be growing back although hard to tell - it could be fine as long as it is a split and not a crack deeper in the trunk - how much bark is connected from top to bottom?

Ok firstly we need a timeline and other info .

1. when tree was bought year and month
When did you notice it
2. how big was the tree
3. did you inspect the trunk carefully or did and the branches with leaves cover it


Once we we get this info we can give you a better idea .

bark split like that is not likely aninmal or insect damage . there are two basic causes

1 winter damage from thawing and freezing especially with late spring cold snaps when sap is running.This is more likely to happen on the south side of a tree or southwest where sun heats it up during the day ...but can happen on the north It is also mostly confined to Dissectums and from my experience high grafted ones .. I have never seen it on low grafted dissectums ...maybe because the trunk is less exposed. Another reason to stay away from high grafts (which as some of you know I have high graft phobia.)

2. Psuedonomous... No one knows much about this but it can be treated with fungicide. It appears in the spring each year after infection during wet periods and is gone buy mid summer but the bark it is on is destroyed. If it doesn't totally encircle the tree or it is just a small spot it is usually no big deal and often eventually seems to disappear with age.It is rampant in the north west since they have such wet cool springs

The problem I see for you is the same I had on an Ebony dissectum .. which has survived for quite a few years now.. It's damage was from bark split on the south west side.from winter thawing and freezing.. I didn't even notice it for a couple years after I planted it since that side was not visable in it's garden setting.but I had noticed the decline and dieing branches on that side.but just thought it was too wet or a crappy tree ( Ebony is truly a fab tree I have since found out from others I have had). it has about the same amount of split and is in yearly decline but is healing pretty fast as yours seems to at least on the left of your photo .. But be advised you will likely have a tree with little or no branches on that side.

If it is bark split and it was not there when you bought it I can see why the nursery is hesitant to replace it. Since it was not there fault. But a guarantee is a guarantee and most nurseries build that into their exorbitant pricing. Whereas most Etaiers don't give long guarantees on their JM's and there prices are usually about half the nurseries ( duh) and they are well aware of these problems whereas most nurseries ( at least in our area ) don't know jack about Jms period.

let us know on the above and we can give you a better idea .. David(san)

This message was edited Feb 10, 2010 10:15 AM

This message was edited Feb 10, 2010 10:21 AM

wha,

You are correct, the bark was growing back or at least it seemed to be healing. However, I just went out to see how much bark is connected top to bottom and the split grew all the way from the bottom to the top. But, the split is not as deep as when it first started. Instead of the peeling bark being around 1/8 thich, it is much thinner at the very top and bottom (maybe 1/16 thick).

Hi David,

I bought the tree the first week of November in 08. I noticed the split in May and I am positive that it wasn't there when I bought it. I went to about 8 nurseries in a 25 mile radius to get a perfect tree. The tree is about 4 1/2 feet tall and it was beautiful all year long.

I like your comment about a guarantee is a guarantee. This was my first tree and I probably paid too much. It was $175 and that was with 40% off. However at the time that seemed to be the best deal considering the look and size of it. Do you think the nursery should give me some type of credit if the tree is still alive in the spring? They did extend the guarantee till the Spring. I just have a feeling that it will survive the winter but gradually die.

Thanks,
JAPMAPLE

Attached is a picture of the tree.

Yah you are in a pickle.. sounds likely to be winter damage ..That's why I NEVER recommend and don't like fall planting for northerners for these reason... both the tree is often still not dormant being held in a green house or sheltered .. then out in your yard KABAMMM... and you won't know tiil spring if it survives or is damaged .Not that this can't happen to any tree even one spring planted..it just puts you in a bad situation.as far as guarantee,.plus you can't really enjoy the tree for 6 months. If you plant a tree in spring and it dies a few weks ltr or develops problems you are likely to have more luck getting it replaced. I am sure these folks will work out something but you may be better off to just let it go .. remember even if they offer you a discount on another tree it will be grossly overpriced. If you pitch a fit they might just replace it if you want to put yourself thru that and can take the high blood pressure...but if it is still alive I don't even think Lowes would go for that.. Probably the best you will do is a discount on a new one which is fine but not a great deal . If it were me i would just conclude it was a 175$ lesson in growing JM's .. I spent thousands on learning how to grow them in the north .. so you got off easy ;>) David(san)

BUT...it may still be alive and fine, relatively speaking. You didn't say that any branches wilted or died last summer. Did it make it through the whole year with no die-back? JMs are tougher than many people believe, and want to live. Keep your fingers crossed and you'll know in a few months if it's made it through this winter.

Fingers are crossed. There was no die back or wilted branches last year so I am hoping for a mircale this year (and hopefully many after that).

... and, if the bark is starting to grow back, that's a good sign. As long as the crack is vertical, damage might be minimal. There is one thing you can do to help it make it through the early spring, when the danger of frost-cracks is greatest (warm sun on cold bark). You can loosely wrap some material around the trunk, starting an inch or so from the bottom to keep the whole trunk shaded from the sun. There is special tree wrap one can use, but I bet if you went to the nursery you bought it from, they would give you one of those spirally plastic tree wraps (many trees are shipped with them, and they should have dozens laying around). You don't want to make it tight which would encourage rot and insects. You just need to shade the trunk. You said that the crack was on the north side, which is unusual. Usually it forms on the south or west side if it's a frost split.

If David(san) could give his opinion of using a loose trunk wrap, it would be a more experienced voice.

However, if you didnd't have any die back at all last year, I would say you have a great chance it's healing with no problem.

Hey David, any ideas on Hoosier Green's post on trunk wrap? Is this something that would help my tree or any other tree during this critical time of the year?

i would not put any wrap on it as it seems to be coming back on its own. wrapping would only allow moisture in there that could be harmful to the tree.

Yep... using wrap is not generally advised or done now a days ( as was the commonly done10-15 years ago) for just that reason most current tree folks say let air out and heal..and don't take a chance of making a nice cozy home for fungus or bugs... now if you have critters doing this thats another story.. those plastic ventilated sleeves are very useful.but this is certainly not critters. a light wrap may not hurt it but I see no reason it would help it either..more chance of hurting. Why it happened on the north side is a mystery ...unless there is a dryer vent nearby or it had warm air being somehow vented on it periodically I would almost bet there was a very small cut or abrasion to it when you got it or happened during planting that was virtually unnoticeable...but it is all speculation ..no real way to ever know. I hope the others are right and it does survive and not linger in a damaged state like mine.. If I get a chance, if this cruddy weather ever lets up, I will post a jpeg of the large vertical bark split , the uneffected bark slowly healing back over it and the pitiful looking top that was once looked every bit as nice but a bit fuller like the CC we are discussing just two years ago. David(san)