New Red Maple turning red

5 years ago

Hello, we planted a new Sunset Red Maple tree about a week and a half ago. We are noticing the leafs are somewhat turning red, as if the tree may not be doing very well. It also seems to have these small Black circles on the leaves. We are not sure if we are watering the tree too much or not enough. The tree was planted in a gravely base soil and with clay at the bottom of the hole.
I initially planted the tree a little low, relative to where the root flare is with the surrounding soil grade so a day after planting we started digging it up in hopes of raising the tree up a little. This seemed to disturb the root ball and it broke apart in a section so we decided to leave it as is instead of disturbing more. We did purchase a moisture probe at Lowe's and it is showing that the tree is moist, even though we haven't watered it a lot the past few days. I'm looking for any feedback as to what could be happening here. I attached a couple pictures of the tree.

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Comments (6)

Kevin
Original Author
5 years ago
Pictures attached...
cearbhaill (zone 6b Eastern Kentucky)
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
May we see a photo of the root flare?

If you are unsure about watering then dig down and see how deeply it is penetrating the soil.

Lack of sufficient deep watering during the establishment phase is the #1 cause of tree problems. Don't rely on probes or schedules or anything else- check and see.
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
5 years ago
first....tree time is counted in decades ... not much happens very fast with trees ...

second .... huge transplant.. not planted in the prime planting season .. but that happened pretty fast ... and then you redug it ...

it would mystify me there is anything else going on.. other than intense severe stress ... digging and moving it from tree farm.. to seller.. to you ...

water deeply and properly ... and give it 3 to 5 years to regrow the root mass that it lost ...

and next time.. or next tree.. go about half size ... cheaper.. less stresses [you and the plant].... easier to handle.. and in said 5 years period.. will probably outgrow the larger transplant.. because the stresses will be so much less... and it will regrow the lost root mass... and get established and growing faster ...

if it were in real bad shape.. ALL THE LEAVES would have browned and fallen off.. and then you would have had something to worry about ... but dont worry to much about off color ...

get some mulch on it ...

in every post.. include your big city name.. so in this case.. we might understand what summer will bring.. and offer suggestions for the heat of summer...

ken

https://sites.google.com/site/tnarboretum/Home/planting-a-tree-or-shrub
Kevin
Original Author
5 years ago
Thank you for the feedback. I am more relieved now about the tree and will continue watering it regularly. I thought perhaps the discoloration was being caused by too much watering but I have not watered it as often as reccomended for a new tree. Yes I agree that the next couple trees will be smaller than this one. It was a beast to handle, even with a tree dolly. We just built a house in an open field and wanted to get trees in ASAP. Would the Fall time be better to plant additional trees, or next spring? I am in Northeast Pennsylvania.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
5 years ago
one more though about the next tree ...

your tree trunk is too thin for how tall the tree is... especially now that it has grown this spring ...

on the next tree ... buy shorter.. and look for a relatively heftier trunk ...

i gave you a link for tree planting.. and the first section is timing... i dont know what more to add on that topic ... i could paste it here if you wish ...

and water when it needs water.. not on some random schedule ... dig small holes around the tree 3 to 6 inches deep with a hand trowel.. and make sure there is moisture at root death.. we really dont care if the surface is dry.. there arent any roots there ...

ken
arbordave (SE MI)
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
"make sure there is moisture at root death" - sounds like Ken wants you to drown your tree ;) - I assume he meant "depth" (darn that autocorrect).

Btw, based on the leaf shape your tree looks more like an Autumn Blaze than a Red Sunset maple.