Will my Japanese maples recover, or did I killed them?:(

[Paulsen30]

Hi!

Last year I planted 3 beautiful Japanese maple trees (Acer palmatum). I spoted some caterpillars, which were eating tree leaves, so I used an insecticide, which uses permethrin as active ingredient. Insecticide is more for indoor use, but some are using it outdoors, i made a mistake.

Result: disaster, tree leaves are turning yellow and seem like they do not have any water in it and are burned.I used it a few days ago. Today I washed each tree 3 times with water from garden hose and put some Activated Charcoal on the ground.
The trees are about 50 cm high (1,64 feet).

What do you think, did I killed them, or will they recover? Wil new leaves grow or do I stand the chance in next season? What can I do? I am so sad. If tree leaves do not recover, then probably trees are dead.

 

[alp]

Please upload photos

 

[Tetters]

Hello Paulsen, and welcome.
I think the first thing to consider is the type of soil you have. The Japanese maple prefers soil that is more acid than alkaline, and this could be the cause for the leaves to yellow.

I think too many gardeners reach for the poison when they see a caterpillar - and this is a bad idea in my opinion. Nature manages to balance things out quite well if all creatures are allowed to live (maybe with one or two exceptions )

Maybe you could check the ph of the soil there? Can you get a testing kit from a garden centre near you?

 

[alp]

Are all the branches with yellow leaves. Sometimes, an acer will survive even though some branches are dead. Don't over do anything. As long as some leaves are still ok, there is a chance that the acer will still live. How tall are they? Without photos, it's hard to tell.

 

[michelle103]

I would definitely check out some care guides and see if there's anything you're not doing. This is one I found on Tree 2 My door which seems pretty good.
https://www.tree2mydoor.com/blog/2017/07/japanese-maple-tree-care-guide/