I am freaking out a little bit. My husband & I bought two Japenese Maples last October and planted them. The leaves began to bloom about six weeks ago and they were a beautiful vibrant green and looked very full & healthy. I noticed a few days ago that almost every leaf is now shriveled up & appears dead. These trees are about six feet tall and we spent $300 on the two trees. I had no idea what happened, then my husband said he hoped that the weed killers he sprayed did not kill the trees. Does anyone know if Round-up can kill these trees? I am so sad about the trees and is there anything that can be done to salvage the trees? Like is it possible that the leaves are dead, but that the trees will bloom again? (I am sure that is wishful thinking, I am just devastated about these trees.)
I think glyphosate -- the active ingredient in Roundup -- kills pretty much everything, if you apply enough of it and are persistent enough. Some plants will bounce back from an initial setback, so it's worth waiting to see if your maple trees might put out new buds (which could take a little while). It's a little bit misleading, I think, to think of a product like Roundup as a "weedkiller." It's really a broad-spectrum herbicide that's mainly useful when you want to wipe out everything in sight (except crops that have been genetically engineered to resist it). I would get rid of it, personally. I don't think this kind of thing has a place in normal home gardening.
Unfortunately Roundup will likely have killed them if it got on the leaves in any quantity. If it was just sprayed on the ground near them it shouldn't have any affect. If it proves not to be the weedkiller then maybe they just get too much sun? I don't know about the growing conditions in Memphis but I imagine it would be hot enough that most Japanese Maples would need some afternoon shade, especially in their first season.
Thanks for the response.... I was afraid of that. I don't think it's the sunlight, because we planted them on the side of the house, so that the house would shade them. My husband said that he sprayed Round-up, along w/ something else our neighbor (who is a farmer) gave him. I think it was supposed to kill onions, but I have no idea as to what it was. I am so sick over this !!!
