I think the picture speaks for itself. Im told it isnt termites since they are rarely found up north. The rest of the tree is fine and the leaves have all grown in. Its really soft and almost spongy like. And ya...its gross. By the way, its a good ole' Maple tree. Help :'( Yucky spongy like wood ( photo / image / picture from MissPotter's Garden ) ( photo / image / picture from MissPotter's Garden )
I do not know a lot about tree probs, but that looks a bit extensive to me. If one thinks of extensive problems of adult trees they think of fungal or bacterial insult. The bacterial sorts of invasion usually give some sort of exudation. You did not say anything about this. The other main sort is fungal. there is a sort of "rot" that I have seen in trees in woods. i think that it would be called "heart rot' in english. If this is what you have, then there is no cure. before you go out and chop your beauty down, get a professional consultation there. they can also advise you as to what; if anything, can be done for your ailing tree. Wounds that cause bark disruption or penetration open the door to fungal spores, so anything that you can do to keep this at a minimum is best. things like woodpeckers, carving of initials, injuries from gardening equipment or lawnmowers, animal rubbing or chewing, branches or external implements that constantly abrade the bark and pruning are some of the things to think about. In the future, if you have maples or other types of trees, I can only suggest when your trees get small wounds try to treat them immediately to keep out the rot fungus'. There are thick compounds that you can smear on the wounds that will seal it until the tree itself forms a 'scar". This is what I do with my garden trees. I wish you all the luck with your tree (and future trees should you wind up removing this one).
Unfortunately, your tree is needing to be cut down. there is no saving it at this point. It is an accident awaiting to happen in a big storm. At some point quite a few years ago there was damage to the bark (maybe a limb was knocked off or something hit the tree) and allowed the inner layer to be exposed to bacteria and fungus and this is the end result.
Doesn't look good Miss Potter. This appears to be an old wound that has let in other pathogens and is causing decline. How big is it? I would be concerned that it may topple over in a strong wind, and cause damage to its surroundings. I am not an arborist, but I do work with them, and I would think they would recommend removal.
