I have a very young Japanese Maple that received a small hack in its bark. (The bark is just peeled away.) The hack is about the size of a nickel and is located about inch or two above ground level. Here are my questions.
- Will this young tree be able to repair the damage and live a long and healthy life?
- Is there anything I can do to treat the injury?
- Or it is pretty much game over and just a matter of time before insects and/or disease find the weak spot and invade?
- If this is the case, should I just replace it now with a new Japanese Maple?
You do not indicate how big the tree is but inferring from your description that the injury does not girdle the tree then it will probably survive. Do nothing, anything that you do will only cause more damage.
The tree should be able to isolate the damage area itself.
I disagree. The ragged bark areas may be unsightly but they threaten no harm to the tree. Unprofessional or careless trimming may result in more harm. Leave it alone.
I disagree. The ragged bark areas may be unsightly but they threaten no harm to the tree. Unprofessional or careless trimming may result in more harm. Leave it alone.
John
I agree with John...a tree will heal itself much the same way as the human body does....
1) If it's really fresh, and the humidity has been high continuously since injury, and the flap is still intact, place it back over the naked wood, and secure it with something that has some stretch to it, like a piece of nylon stocking. Give it a few months, and then remove the "bandage", and see if the flap is going to adhere. If so, do nothing. If not, go to #2.
2) If the flap has been hanging there drying out for days, or if it's missing entirely, or if #1 didn't work, trim the edges of the remaining bark smoothly, using something like a new single edged razor blade. Mulch around the tree so you don't skin the bark again. (aka "string trimmer blight").
3) If it's completely girdled, you may be able to save it with bridge grafts, using twigs from the same tree. See:
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you don't have grafting wax, use saran wrap around the area till you can get some and replace the saran.
Nope. Just change whatever weeding or trimming habit caused the problem in the first place, if that's how it happened.
Plants are pretty tough. They're not dead till they're compost.
Yes and no . . . trees have no immune system, cannot regenerate damaged tissue, and do not "heal" but they can grow new tissue to cover wounds. They are much better at doing this where proper branch collar cuts are made, but this tree may well cover the area of missing bark with new tissue eventually.
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