Thanks for posting and including pictures of your Japanese maples. Based on the photos, it seems like your trees might be experiencing leaf tip scorch. Leaf scorch happens when a tree loses water from its leaves faster than it can take in more through its roots. This is a frequent issue for Japanese maples when they get stressed, but it's mostly a cosmetic problem, rather than a threat to your tree's overall health.

For trees in containers, like yours seem to be, the most common causes are related to watering and sun exposure:

Underwatering: Japanese maples love a good drink! Make sure the soil is consistently moist, but not soggy.

Overwatering: Even though they like moisture, soggy soil can suffocate the roots. Ensure the pots have good drainage.

Strong Sun: While many varieties can tolerate full sun, excessive sun exposure, especially during hot weather, can stress the trees.

Strong Winds: Wind can dry out the leaves faster, contributing to scorch.

Since these factors are more likely to affect containerized trees, some additional information would be helpful to diagnose the issue further:

* How much sun exposure do your trees get each day?
* Roughly how big are the trees themselves?
* What size are the planters they're currently in?

The answers to these questions will help narrow down the potential causes and suggest the best course of action for your Japanese maples.

I took samples to the "Master Gardeners" @ Brookside gardens in Montgomery county Md. they ID'ed them (best guess) as a mold  and I would very much like yo know the specific mold, it's treatment (to save my trees), and any recommendations on products that might work to solve this for me.

The samples I brought to Brookside and tge progress of the effect across the leaves tree are more indicative of infection than scalding. It appears to have already resulted in some branches dying back.

If you need more or better information, please let me know but please reconsider your evaluation.

Yes, a sample would be a better for seeing anything other than what appears to be leaf scorch, which is very common in these maples in our area.
Our team is working with pictures and descriptions to help gardening questions.

Could you send pictures of:

1. The trees in their containers, showing the amount of root space, etc.

2. Their setting, showing if their are in full sun, if they are in a windy location, if they are sheltered by larger trees.

3. Necrosis in any plant part.

4. Anything else you think could be a factor, like what are the indicators that the trees are dying?

Another question, do your trees have “live” compost or bagged in the soil mix? Looking forward to receiving more info!

Kate

P.S. An additional option is to send a sample to a plant pathology lab for testing. That will take more time, so could be concurrent with our team’s eyes-on process. Unlike our team, pathology labs charge fees: https://spes.vt.edu/affiliated/plant-disease-clinic.html

https://www.npdn.org/lab_directory