where are you.. big city name...

and was there a freeze this spring ... right at leaf out time ...

lots of healing damage on the trees... but that is probably not here nor there ...

looks like new construction behind you.. was there any significant regrading back there.. is that a pool??? .. how long has all that rock been there .. did they put landscape fabric under it ...

that one pic almost makes it look like it was telephone poled.... i cant see the root flare ... can you???

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=tree+root+flare&t=ffnt&iax=images&ia=images

how positive are you on the maple ID???

ken

hi ken, thanks for commenting

Im just outside of Toronto, ON, Canada.

That home behind is ours lol. We take care of some of the stuff behind the pool just to try to keep up with anything and keep everything we can healthy and attractive. Pool went in bout 12 or 13 years ago if memory serves correct. There was a small amount of river rock there years back but I acquired a couple yards more tgrough a job that wanted me to dispose of some last season. Everything was powerwashed and then layed out. No landscaping fabric underneath, the soil didnt really grow much of anything so it was eroding from uner the pool deck each year. Thought was the river rock would help out a bit and keep things tidy.

Not too sure about the root flare visablity. Id have to check and get back to you. Im no expert on this, im assuming you want to make sure you see some flare? I wouldnt say theres a mound around the bases however i would rule out if the tree has been planted too deep, is that what telephone poling is?

Thank you.

Forgot to add..

I always assumed they were Silver Maples or Sugar Maples, dont quote me. From my knowledge they had 5 pointed leaves and looked like a maple leaf to me however that may be wrong. They had a key fall from them about 8 years ago that started growing in my yard. I had transplanted it and its almost bigger than its parents right now, its quite happy in comparison. Might be because its in a far better location.

Do you have deer?

Bark shows either red or silver maple, not sugar maple. Sometimes those two maples are prone to sun-scald damage on the trunks, but what you show seems way worse than normal. Maybe damage from something like deer-rubbing or some other mechanical damage.

its not an issue of planting depth at this age .. if it ever was.. it obviously outgrew that ..

its an issue of a bobcat or bulldozer putting an extra foot or two of soil on top of the root zone ...

roots need air as much as anything else.. and when there is a substantial change in soil depth.. it can cause problems ... many of which can look like this.. and the landscape fabric could mess with such also ...

but if you have been at the house for over a decade ... and know thats not an issue.. then it probably isnt ... if you were a new owner.. then we would try to figure it out along those lines ...

frankly.. i would probably get rid of all of them ... sooner or later .... and if thats not an option.. at least plant some replacements now.. so in 10 years when you decide you dont want to look at them anymore.. the new ones are fully established and already doing their thing ..

next tree planting time is probably fall ... see section one at the link below ... its usually done in dormancy.. when there are no leaves to try to maintain ... but you pick the tree in leaf ... or even better at fall leaf color time.. if thats important ... though you can buy it anytime.. that doesnt mean it planting time ... eh??

ken

https://sites.google.com/site/tnarboretum/Home/planting-a-tree-or-shrub

There is deer way way back but honestly, Ive never seen them come close to the house. They tend to stay far back away from the homes and out of site.

I would probably lean on Silver Maple

Any thing I can do for these trees to help? I understand the damage is done and its not good at all. I see that the tree has made a good calus underneath, its trying so I might as well try what I can lol.

I definitely start planting some back ups in case.

Any advice? Or can someone predict worst and best case for what in dealing with?

It could survive. VERY carefully remove any bark that comes off very easily (if you have to pull too hard, it might pull off living bark), and you should be able to see better just how much damage there is.