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Saving a Maple Sapling with Lawnmower Damage

Assessing Girdling Injury

A 3-year-old maple shows yellowing leaves, early red color, and a soft, puckered bark wound encircling the trunk from mower hits. If the cambium is severed all around, survival is unlikely.

Care Steps

Mulch 3 inches deep to prevent future damage.
Water 1 inch weekly (measure with pan).
Do NOT paint wound—slows healing.
Consider tree wrap for protection.

Monitor with scratch test; prune dead branches only after confirming no recovery.

Trees: Silver Maple Trunk Rot: Don't Foam—Fertilize and Prune Deadwood; Maple Borer Infestation in Old Wound: Treatment and Risk; Stressed Maple with Frost Cracks, Anthracnose & Lost Limb; Maple Trunk Split: Wound Healing and Borer Prevention; Treating Borer Damage and Sap Flow in Crimson Maple; Maple Trunk Rot from Old Pruning Wound; Best Mulch for Mature Maple Trees; Borer Damage on Mature Silver Maple; Maple Sap Flow After Utility Pruning: Normal and Temporary; Japanese Maple Trunk Damage: Emergency Wound Care

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