White stuff on mature Japanese maple trunk

jamesharcourt

Does anybody have any idea what this fairly recent white stuff is appearing on the trunk of one of my Japanese maples?

nutcutlet

some sort of fungus, not a good sign. Looks like the bark has been damaged, that sort of fungus is the result of bark damage, not the cause

jamesharcourt

Should I take any action?

Fairygirl

Save up for a new one, James 
What a shame - it doesn't look too happy does it?  It does look as if there's quite  a bit of damage to the trunk here and there - bark missing, as nut says. 
Have you got a wider view of the whole tree?

jamesharcourt

Not at the moment but it does have new growth which still hasn’t dropped leaf.

The white stuff is low down but it’s a good 10’ tall.  It’s had a horrid year, will this fungus kill it or can I do anything?

The tree is enormous and getting it out of the ground would be a horrendous task!

Dovefromabove

Don’t think it’ll need the fungus to kill it ... it’s already on its way out possibly due to the damaged bark ... the fungus is feeding on the already decaying material. 

jamesharcourt

@Dovefromabove is it likely to be dead by Spring, i.e Should I remove it now? Or should I wait until spring to see what happens?

I’m new to these kind of problems as you can probably tell!

Dovefromabove

I believe that every dead plant is a new planting opportunity so, I'd take it down this winter, replenish the soil around it and start choosing something to plant nearby.

If you have space in your garden for a wood pile for wildlife some logs from your dead tree will be ideal.  https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/advice/gardening-for-wildlife/dead-wood-for-wildlife/

nutcutlet

It may struggle on for a while if there's healthy bark on the other side but it has a very limited future.

jamesharcourt

I have to admit, I can't bring myself to remove it.  I have a weird thing about nursing stuff back to health wherever and whenever possible.

Does anybody think it would pose a threat to nearby trees?  It isn't an eyesore and I have patience :-)  But if it's definitely flogging a dead horse, I'll bite the bullet.

BobTheGardener

Most fungi (and I think the one on your tree) only live on already dead matter, so the bark on your tree is dead wherever that white growth has appeared.  That is not good news as the inner bark (called cambium) is the only part of the woody sections of the tree which is actually growing.  It is different if the heartwood is infected as that can rot leaving just the cambium and sapwood and a tree will happily keep on growing (hence ancient hollow Oak trees still growing happily.)  Rotten heartwood causes the tree to be physically weaker but doesn't kill it directly.  Rotting bark = tree soon going to the great arboretum in the sky.