Acer Rubrum (Red Maple) #3

[Orion_metalhead]

End of year. Still has some color. Looking ok but bud development is not as strong as other Rubrum which I have.

Age: 2yr
Training: 1yr
Width: .25
Height: 7"

Front:


From right:


Back:


From left:

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Still here... no idea what to do with it so ill just leave it for this year. Will probably need repot next year.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

especially with young trees, letting it grow is usually the right choice.

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Still alive. Possible fronts. Dont know. Was slip potted last year...

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Before and after late spring prune.

 

[A. Gorilla]

Ok, SO....If this is the scale you wanna keep it at, you need to defoliate quite frequently. Keeping big leaves around for very long is not doing you any favors.

Do not randomly decide it "needs vigor"; that will destroy your internode situation. Do not heavily fertilize. If thats in "dirt" then maybe not at all.

Based on your other threads, let me just say that it helps to have an agenda and go with it for a while. So if this is ramification-ville you need to mean it and defoliate into submission.

Otherwise its the same-old, same-old healthy, huge-leafed, rubrum in a pot.

 

[A. Gorilla]

I screw with seedlings every single year. They erupt out of my woodchips.

I love rubrums, but they need to be tamed.

 

[Orion_metalhead]

How often do you defoliate yours? Do you completely exfoliate or only the largest leaves? I partially defoliate my boxelder maple and it does seem to have a restraining effect. I held back somewhat this year in preparation for a hard chop, but will continue again after the first flush next year.

I have yet to update this one... will try to get to it tonight.

 

[A. Gorilla]

In spring thats all there is, obviously....the big leaves.

Provided you want to only maintain a situation, maybe try giving those big 6 weeks of life and then remove every leaf. For the rest of the year remove rebellious individual leaves as needed. Spring internodes are going to be big too. Consider early pinching.

You can see how variable the sizes can be in my picture. Leaf reduction is doable, but I suspect it requires being pretty bold about purging leaf size non-conformists.

ABCarve and VAfisher are the ones to really ask.

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Just a mess of leaves before pruning...

 

[Kullas]

Just a mess of leaves before pruning...
View attachment 438516
View attachment 438517

What do you use for the tag?

 

[Orion_metalhead]

A piece of galvanized metal. I punch it with a number. It references the tree in my spreadsheet with notes on it.

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Before and after. Hard cuts on developing material. Already have roots out the bottom from earlier in year repot.

Before:


After:


@Bonsai Nut, can you retitle "#3" to "#12" to match my own records. Think this is the last one with old numbers. Thanks.

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Good response so far!!

 

[dbonsaiw]

Good response so far!!

Great response actually. Is that because you cut it back to no foliage? I cut mine back about a week ago and no response yet, but I left a little foliage.

 

[Tieball]

You’re quite patient and have a good vision in mind. A good skill and talent to have. On species like this I tend to give up and return them to the woods for growing with the big ones.

 

[Orion_metalhead]

Great response actually. Is that because you cut it back to no foliage? I cut mine back about a week ago and no response yet, but I left a little foliage.

I think for very apically dominant or unbalanced deciduous trees that back bud readily, cutting back to nothing forces the tree to push everywhere at once equalizing the vigor.

 

[Orion_metalhead]

You’re quite patient and have a good vision in mind. A good skill and talent to have. On species like this I tend to give up and return them to the woods for growing with the big ones.

@ABCarve's Acer Rubrum has been a big inspiration to me to stick with this species. I think it gets an unfair bad rap.

 

[ABCarve]

@ABCarve's Acer Rubrum has been a big inspiration to me to stick with this species. I think it gets an unfair bad rap.

I admire your enthusiasm! I think your projects are a good way to learn and start understanding the species, however the size of trees you're working with are a bit small to stay in scale with the leaf size even when they are reduced. Acer rubrum is not a good candidate for shohin. If you're starting with just small stock and wanting it to grow into something larger I would recommend that you just let them grow in a larger pot to trunk up.

 

[Orion_metalhead]

I have some larger ones also, but im going to try to keep this one tiny!