Why are my Maple trees dying

[pmulhollem]

About 8 years ago I had two of my Maple tree loose there leaves in the late summer and then the following year no leaves and they died.  I ask around and was told it was because I disturbed their roots.  Which I didn't.  Within the next 8 years I've lost more Maples  and last year three more trees showed  the same signs of dying.  Our neighbors have also lost maples they same way.  I tried Mauget Imicide and the trees that were dying last year showing signs of life, but it's still too early to tell.    I don't want to loose all my maple trees! Any suggestions?

[CJennings]

Location would be helpful. As would the species of maple. There are different possibilities. Have you had drought issues? Insects? Narrowing down the precise cause of tree mortality isn't always cut and dry. A drought one year can leave a tree so weakened it can't fight off a fungus or insect attacking it another year. Likewise with one pathogen attacking a tree and leaving it weak for another or an insect or when a drought comes. So if you had some limited success with an insecticide it may or may not have been the insects that were the primary issue.

[thecfarm]

Welcome to the forum. Native trees? Did someone plant them? I suppose these are on a lawn? Close to the road?

[pmulhollem]

The Sugar Maples have been growing in my lawn for 40 years and are native to the property which is in Western Pennsylvania.    We live on a farm and have wooded areas around our farm which have also been affected.   About a mile from the main road.

[CJennings]

Sugar maple decline has been an issue in PA and other parts of the northeast. The causes are not simple to sort out.

Are there roads in close proximity to your trees which get heavily salted in winter? Salt could account for some of it but if many are quite some distance from a salted road, there would be other causes. You might consider doing some soil pH tests in areas near declining trees and healthy trees. See if you come up with a difference. That won't be conclusive but it should be considered. Soil acidity due to acid rain has been blamed in the past for sugar maple decline.

[Ron Scott]

Are the trees actually dead or just loosing vigor? It would be good to have your local Extension Service or Conservation District Forester do an evaluation of your trees to help determine the local site issue.

http://garden.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Maple_Tree_Diseases