Japanese maple struggling

[hooked]

Hello - first post here.
I live in Toronto Canada and have a Japanese maple that I planted 3 or 4 years ago. It’s been doing very well until this year. It was looking sparse (it’s usually very full) and then I noticed the bark in a couple of spots had peeled away (near the base). A few of the leaves look like almost burnt on the ends.
i put a rabbit cage around it as a precaution but I don’t suspect it’s animals as nose of the bark looks eaten, just peeled away.

any suggestions on what this may be or how to save the tree??

thanks in advance

 

[SimpleScott]

Your second image leads to a very poor outlook. What does the other side of the trunk look like? The whole tree appears to have less than 20% of its cambium left in that wounded area of the trunk. Very unlikely to have much time left

 

[hooked]

Hi Scott - Ive attached photos of both sides of the trunk and a piece of the bark that came off. Hope that helps

 

[SimpleScott]

Unless this wound occurred recently (which doesn't appear to be the case) I have no idea how this tree is still alive. It appears completely girdled in this location meaning there's no connection between the roots and the leaves.

As for how the wound happened - voles or rabbits appear to have chewed the sapwood around this area for some time.

 

[hooked]

Not the news I was hoping for - I do live in a rural area and have lots of rabbits and voles so quite possibly could be the culprit.
Frustrating!! Thanks very much for your insight.

 

[SimpleScott]

I'd wait until the end of the season and check if any of the buds that have set are alive. I really think it'll be stone cold dead by spring. Sorry about that.

There is a product you can get that is like a white twisty wrap (photo) that can deter smaller animals well but it's best taken off and reapplied regularly to not promote mould, decay, or insects.

 

[hooked]

Will do. Thanks again, very helpful info.