Maple not budding out

j evans

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The nights are in the 30 -low 40's, day in mid 60's. J.Maples are all leafed out for about 2 weeks or so.

?
 

GrimLore

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The nights are in the 30 -low 40's, day in mid 60's. J.Maples are all leafed out for about 2 weeks or so.

?

If you really look close you will understand that for what ever reason that one is moving a little slower. Could be a multitude of things but it has plenty of signs of life. I myself think that one is "colder" then the others - perhaps a root ball that is still partially frozen. Either way I would just take care of it the same way you are the others and wait. It is possible that "something" perhaps a Vole has feasted on some of the root and that some of the tree may not be ok but what I see tells me there won't be any great damage...

Grimmy
 

j evans

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Grimmy -

Thanks for your information I appreciate it. I have killed off some older, smaller trees before and felt bad but this is my first larger collection and I am still hoping that someway it makes it.

My second large collection a burning bush seems to have worked out fine so far as it is already budding out. First photo is July 2014 after collection and second is April 8, 2015. At collection I took off about 2 - 3' of the top and further reduced it early this spring. Now I think that I will have to pretty much just let it sit for the rest of this year, maybe just a little bit of top reduction. I don't know if I should do anything with the roots this fall or not.

100_2987.jpg 100_2991.jpg DSCF5400.jpg

Jamie
 
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GrimLore

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I also collected a good sized Burning Bush in 2014 and it is just now showing buds pushing after an unusual Winter here. I am confident it will be ok though and plan on sawing it up and potting it in about 2 maybe 3 weeks. Once they make the first Winter "most" collected are ok but some like Yew take(in my opinion) 2 to 3 years to get established enough to work on. There is a lot of factors to look at in Maples. For example that tree may have been growing and getting established on one side the first year while another portion may have looked good but was running on reserve. Could be a root cut at time of collection, critters, etc... Either way it looks alive and there is enough no matter what to work with when it awakens. It is a hard call but more times then not I have seen patience win!

Grimmy
 

discusmike

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The maple still looks like it has life in it,be patient n don't over water.
 

j evans

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On the maple it still has the winter mulch on it due to the cold nights. I think that I would be safe enough now to uncover the top leaving the pot in the box. This I would think would help the soil dry a bit etc. I have a photo of the soil above. Any thoughts?
 

j evans

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Grimmy -

Thanks for the link on the burning bush. That was informative.

On the burning bush do you think that I would be alright doing some root work this year? I dug it July of 2014 and don't have a photo of the roots left as I was just in a big hurry to get it covered back up. It would be nice to get it into a smaller container with lighter soil as right now I can't even begin to lift it. As for styling I don't have a clue other than it is going to have to be some kind of a multi-trunk with some carving etc. I'd like to get it down to say at least 24" to 30" but it is a big base so maybe that will have to dictate the height. I don't have a measurement but I believe that the tub is about 22" to 24".

100_2991.jpg
 
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Some people have posted that the tree looks fine. Maybe it is. Where I live, maples that look like that are not fine.
I hope your tree is just late to bud out, which is not uncommon. Give it time. Keep caring for it like the rest of your trees and time will tell. Good luck and hope for the best!
 

Eric Group

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One of my Tridents- whose bark was gnawed on by a squirrel this winter- is slow to leaf out this year too! All my other Tridents are in full leaf ( except one or two that had their new buds frost burnt by a freak freeze a few weeks back, but even those are leafed out partially..). It happens sometimes when they are stressed... True for all Maples. Same with some Rubrums I have. Most are fine, a couple barely even started breaking leaves!

Personally, I HOPE that is all it is for yours, but it doesn't look real happy to me! The bark color seems off on the newer growth, the old growth looks downright crispy... I don't even see SWELLING buds on the small branches... I am kind of siding with Don here- it does NOT look OK to me. JM can really be the weakest/ quickest to give up and drop dead in my experience of the Maples I have worked with. Especially when it comes to root problems! They will take a big root chop when really healthy, but when not happy, when stressed, or when the roots are worked too OFTEN... They can just up and croak on you sometimes. Last time I had it happen to me- the tree got chewed on by a Squirrel (just like that Trident I mentioned above.. See a pattern here?), then the pot froze and fell apart, when I transplanted it mid winter (it had just been repotted the previous growing season) it basically just died. Within a few weeks the bark was a different color, the buds turned black and never swelled up in the Spring...
 

iant

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I have an air layer separation maple that is just now starting to leaf out. It was quite a bit set back by having only a small amount of roots to work with. My other maples leafed out in ?Feb? It really should have buds though. I don't see any of the branch tips in the photos but if there are really no buds anywhere you're in trouble. Otherwise you might be fine. Just don't overwater while it has no leaves.
Ian
 

GrimLore

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Grimmy -

Thanks for the link on the burning bush. That was informative.

On the burning bush do you think that I would be alright doing some root work this year? I dug it July of 2014 and don't have a photo of the roots left as I was just in a big hurry to get it covered back up. It would be nice to get it into a smaller container with lighter soil as right now I can't even begin to lift it. As for styling I don't have a clue other than it is going to have to be some kind of a multi-trunk with some carving etc. I'd like to get it down to say at least 24" to 30" but it is a big base so maybe that will have to dictate the height. I don't have a measurement but I believe that the tub is about 22" to 24".

I collected mine in April 2014 and took it down a lot farther, from 4-5 foot to 21-23 inches if I remember correct. At collection I sawed the root mass down to under 6 inches deep and it has since compacted down to 3 1/2 inches in that basket. I was going to wait until Spring 2016 to reduce the height again and pot it. After reading your question I looked it over and will be knocking it down to about 12 inches and taking every thing off except the largest "trunk" portion in 2 weeks or so. I might be able to make a natural twin trunk out of it but I won't know until it is on the bench. The reason I am not waiting another year is because it recovered fast and wintered well indicating it is healthy. Mine is in Pumice(Dry Stall) and the basket is lined with pine horse bedding to keep everything inside. I doubt it weighs more then 20 pounds. If you do a light mix like that make sure you wire the bush in firmly so it does not go airborne and grind up its own roots every time it moves. So if you think yours is healthy I would go for it. There is never a guarantee but looking at mine and knowing how tough it is I am rolling the dice. If it goes bad lesson learned, if not 1 year gained...

Grimmy
 

j evans

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My maple still has nothing going on. About ready to pull it out of the pot and put in the dumpster. Feeling bad as I took a decent tree out of lousy growing conditions, put it into what I thought was better conditions and it just wasn't happy. Probably my best bet so far for a bigger trunk tree. Oh well, guess I most likely will kill again.
 

BunjaeKorea

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Dont chuck it!
Get a big clear plastic bag and enclose the top of the tree, move it inside near a window for a week or more. The heat and humidity should give it the help it needs if it has a chance. Tried this with all my maples that had problems or stress, works a treat. Works for oak and elm too. Try it you have nothing to lose but dont chuck it out yet
 

j evans

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Well, it just passed a year since I collected the big maple. To add insult to injury it took me about 45 minutes with a hand saw to cut it up small enough to get it in the garbage and dumpster. When I pulled the tree from the pot it appeared that the tree never attempted to create any new roots. It was completely dried out as far as the truck and branches. In learning, but due to the circumstances I did not collect enough roots (it was not possible as under asphalt) I should have reduced the foliage even more than I did ( I estimate that I reduced it about 40 - 60%) and I guess maybe the biggest lesson, not every tree is looking for a better home. Collection of the bigger plants is a lot trickier, time consuming, costly and aggravating when they die. If I ever have a large collection that lives I assume that it will be more satisfying.

Jamie
 

GrimLore

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To add insult to injury it took me about 45 minutes with a hand saw to cut it up small enough to get it in the garbage and dumpster.

Took me 11 days to destroy almost all of my plants due to a problem with pseudomonas syringae... That is not making me quit though and the back yard is cleaned up and ready for plants. That 220+ pound collected Yew seems to have made it but putting things in perspective; being large it could appear great for a few years living on reserves and go belly up :eek: It is just the chance and time you must consider with the larger stuff. The Yew however - if it makes it will be a very nice "Graham Potter" style in 5 years - just have to "roll the dice" on them.

Grimmy
 

j evans

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I knew you had some trouble and I'm sorry for that. Sometimes things just don't seem fair. But then other times things shine for you without much effort. Guess everything works out in the end. Hope you get some even better trees in the near future.
 
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