We just moved into a house with a beautiful maple in the backyard that
provides much needed shade to our sunroom. We noticed a chain/rope around the
trunk for what I believe was for a hammock and left on too tightly for
at least three years. The tree trunk has started to grow over the chain.
We immediately cut the chain on one side and took as much of it off
without too much damage to the tree to let it 'breathe' but the
overgrowth prohibits the entire chain from being taken off the tree
unless we dig into the trunk about two or three inches all around. Now
that the leaves are coming in, there are several branches almost
entirely bare with only a few leaves at the tip of the branch,
especially thru the middle and top of the tree which leaves me to
believe the chain has been suffocating the tree. Is there anything I
can do here? I'd hate to loose this beautiful tree.