Last August I had a large hornet nest in my 14-15' red maple (green leaves, turns red in fall). I sprayed the nest then knocked it down and rinsed off the tree. The entire area around where the nest was located turned colors prematurely and lost it's leaves before the rest of the tree.

This spring the tree budded as normal but the leaves in the affected area did not sprout and now it appears that these branches are dead. I have seen some posts regarding "phytotoxic reaction" and I am concerned that this might be the issue.

Are there any experts out there that can share your opinion and suggested remedy? Should I take a sample of the dead area into a nursery to have it evaluated?

Any help is greatly appreciated.