With spot-strewn, drooping leaves, a ball maple loses its representative appearance. Care errors and illnesses are the most common causes of aesthetic disaster. This guide gives useful tips on how to restore Acer platanoides Globosum to its former glory.
Why are the leaves of my maple tree hanging limp?
If ball maple leaves hang limply, drought stress, tar spot disease or mildew can be the cause. Remedy: Water regularly, remove infected leaves and apply a milk-water mixture.
When drought stress occurs, maple leaves become weak
As a typical heart-rooted tree, a maple maple spreads its roots predominantly just below the soil surface. Only in loose, sandy-loamy soil do the strands reach a depth of 80 cm or more. Therefore, the tree depends on rain for a balanced water balance. If the sky keeps its floodgates closed, drought stress is inevitable and the leaves hang limply. This is what you need to do now:
- Water ball maple regularly with normal tap water for the first 5 years
- Water older trees thoroughly during summer droughts
- Run the water hose for 30 minutes two to three times a week
By not watering daily in summer, but rather more rarely and thoroughly, you promote deeper root growth.
Tar spots and mildew disfigure the foliage - what to do
Black spots with a yellow border are the classic symptom of tar spot disease. An unsightly, mealy-gray coating indicates mildew. Both fungal infections spoil the shapely leaves of the maple maple. How to act correctly:
- Tar stains: remove all maple leaves from the garden in autumn to break the pathogen's development cycle
- Mildew: cut off and burn all infected leaves
- Then spray the crown with a mix of water and fresh milk in a ratio of 9:1
Treatment with chemical fungicides is unsuccessful for tar spot disease and unnecessary for powdery mildew. It is important to note that you do not dispose of infected maple leaves in the compost heap. Burn the leaves or otherwise remove them from the garden to prevent the fungal spores from spreading again next year through wind or rain.
Tip
Does a maple tree let its foliage droop in the weeks after planting? Then you have planted the young plant too deep in the soil. The planting depth within the nursery should be maintained as precisely as possible in the garden. Otherwise, the roots will suffer from a lack of oxygen and will stop supplying the crown.
