Help for Maple Missing Bark in MI (USA)

Midwestmom

Hello!
I live in SE Michigan (USA). Our Crimson King Maple has lost a 4ft (longest point) by 5 inch (widest point) piece of bark. It looks as if it was torn off as there are ragged pieces of bark on the edges. The tree faces south and receives sun all day.

I would appreciate any advice on how to help the tree. We are going through a very hot spell and our entire family is worried about the tree

Attached is a picture.

This is our first post--Happy to have found the site!
Thank you from Michigan

Attached Thumbnails

 

Brent Ferris

The damage looks a lot like lightning damage. Remove as any loose bark and leave it be. IF the tree is healthy, callus tissue will eventually cover this area, but this part of the tree will die, and there will always be dead tissue at this location. Be sure the tree receives about 1 inch of water/week to counteract effects of heat - better to water heavily 1 or 2 days, vs light watering every day. THere is no need to paint or coat the exposed wood -- anything you do may help you feel better, but will not benefit the tree, and may slow down the tissue regrowth.

glennak

Does look lke lightning but if it is there will be other damage further up. If you got to it earlier you could have wraped plastic around it to keep it moist and hot this may have saved the cambium and it could grow new bark, on the bare wood, but now it will have to grow from the sides. So as treeshave needs said leave it alone and it will look after itself.

Midwestmom

I don't think it's lightning damage as upper part of the tree shows no damage. I'm afraid I didn't post a picture of the upper tree. But we will leave the area alone as you advised and water it well.

Did anyone think it could be animal damage by a raccoon or such? I thought an animal might have ripped the bark off to get to some insects. We live in a suburb, but we do get a lot of small wildlife...

Thanks to both of you!

Brent Ferris

Norway Maple bark is quite tight to the trunk - so unless you have some bears in your neighbourhood, other animals are not capable of pulling off the bark - nor in such a neat fashion. And there would have to be a lot of bugs under the bark, and a strong suspicion such bugs were there to prompt a bear to work so hard to rip bark off the tree. And if there were that many bugs.... the tree would look a lot different, and bark would likely be falling off the tree on its own.

So, lightning is the most likely cause.

Glennak, I have seen lower trunks (only) scarred by lightning -- I agree it is not common -- it suggests the electrical charge was coming from the ground up, vs the sky down.