Question From: Salt Lake City, Utah, United States
Q: I have a Japanese Maple that is about 15 yrs old. It has or had green leaves. The last couple of yrs the leaves are really light green or almost yellow. I have bought the spikes you can put into the ground the tree. I have added iron around the base of the tree into the soil. And I thought maybe it was not getting enough water so I've watered it more. Still not helping. It is on the north side of my house. Moving it would not be possible at this point. I just think it needs something to get the leaves back to the rich green it use to be. Help
A: I would have a trained tree doctor - a certified arborist, look at it. The roots of your tree have traveled far beyond the canopy of the tree, spikes are not effective on older trees with large root systems. Iron should be applied to a wide area around the tree, not at the base. There may be other issues so have it looked at. Happy Yardening, Nancy.
