Is there some sort of maple blight going around in dense populations?
The area had black spot leaves the past couple of years. – Patrick, Racine There are many diseases and insects affecting maples. What we worry about most is a fungal disease called verticillium wilt. It is comparable to Dutch elm disease and oak wilt; it acts on the vasculature blocking the flow of water and nutrients to the top of the tree. The black spots on the leaves may not have anything to do with the trees dying. It could be anthracnose, which is mainly a cosmetic disease. Another possibility is maple decline, which generally occurs 10 to 15 years after planting and is found to be caused, in most cases, by improper planting. When maple trees are planted too deep their roots tend to encircle the base of the tree, resulting in girdling of the trunk. If the trunks look like straight telephone poles going into the ground instead of having a wide root flare, then it could be girdling roots. If the trees are planted too close it could just be a matter of competition for water and nutr
