Air Layering Japanese maple

[Japonicus]

I am puzzled what this has to do with layering.

If I am trying to 'chase back the foliage', I cut back to the closest visible bud pair. A few weeks later, buds will become visible farther back to which I can again cut back. Eventually, the apical bud pair breaks and I let those two shoots grow. I suppose that one could also do this to a stem that is being layered, but one should subsequently let the season's growth run. My personal habit is to not trim the branch that I am layering. However, I haven't bothered to assay whether there is (or will be) more foliage on an unpruned versus pruned stem/branch.

Would it not be wise to lessen the leaf demand on new roots initially and before they (leaves) arrived?
At least that was the idea I've got from watching Peter Chans videos.
EDIT: Perhaps I'm confusing the layer video with another one.

 

[0soyoung]

I was told that earlier wounds would increase the chance for fungus to get in?

It is always a possibility. Many of us pucker over pruning during winter because it exposes cambium and xylem while the tissues are snoozing, which means the normal CODIT reactions are s l o w. The counter argument is that pathogens are also s l o w to act when it is cold.

I'm familiar with two particular pathogens of this ilk in Japanese maples, verticillium and nectria.

Verticillium is soil borne, and could get into the exposed xylem if one grabbed a handful of bad dirt and rubbed it on OR if the girdle was near ground level and left open in the rain (verticillium being splashed up onto the girdle). I layer landscape trees and do leave girdles open for at least a day to kill residual xylem initials (to prevent bridging), but never during a rain event. Alternatively, I wipe down girdles with a paper towel dampened with 70% isopropyl alcohol, just as I do all my cutting tools before use. I will further note that verticillium is nixed by a year of thorough, natural composting (be wary of new landscape soil)

Nectria invades both phloem and xylem, so it too could get into a girdle. But nectria fruits in mid to late summer. Few spores are around at any other time, so it isn't a worry with girdles made in the spring. However, I did once have a new landscape tree affected by it, but didn't realize it until later when I had already spread it to two other of my landscape trees by my tree saw and pruners. As a consequence, I always sanitize my cutting tools, including my grafting knife by wiping them with an alcohol soaked paper towel (sanitary wipes will work as well). I have seen the orange fruiting bodies of nectria on several occasions on nursery stock. It becomes a problem because the sales people think it is an innocuous 'orange stuff' that they just prune off the inventory as it show up. If you've never seen such 'orange stuff' on branches that suddenly went brown, you probably don't need to worry about it.

So, bottom line, I don't think this is serous concern, generally speaking.

 

[Japonicus]

Here's what I was confusing @0soyoung . It is the post separation when the layer is potted up
that Peter Chan removes a good bit of foliage. My bad.

 

[0soyoung]

Would it not be wise to lessen the leaf demand on new roots initially and before they (leaves) arrived?

My view is that carbohydrates and auxin made by the leaves is what grows roots. I want all the roots I can get as fast as I can get them.
If I don't have enough roots to supply all the water lost by transpiration, keep it out of direct sun, sprinkle with water, make a humidity tent to prevent desiccation.

It is the same game as Walter Pall's repotting his giga-$ Japanese maples in August.

 

[b3bowen]

Ryusen may be one of the easiest maples to root that I have found yet. Put a turnequtte on this one late august/early sept. and burried the stem in moist soil. Did not girdle since I asumed it would not put out roots till this year. I have a large landscape maple so it did not matter if it failed. I could see roots growing across the ground within 4 weeks.

Dug it up this week since buds are starting to swell.

 

[b3bowen]

Actually grafted some shigitatsu sawa onto ryusen rootstock this year so that in a few years I can easily layer it off right below the graft union since I am fairly sure I will never get shigitatsu sawa on its own roots.

 

[0soyoung]

Actually grafted some shigitatsu sawa onto ryusen rootstock this year so that in a few years I can easily layer it off right below the graft union since I am fairly sure I will never get shigitatsu sawa on its own roots.

I'm curious about your experiences behind this. I have an aka shigatatsu sawa that I had difficulty layering and just want to 'compare notes'.

 

[b3bowen]

So be honest, I have not yet tried. I have a Shigitatsu sawa that I grafted about four years ago, and it has grown so incredibly slowly (in the ground) even with regular fertilization, that this is the first year I’ve even had spare buds to make new grafts. My thought process is that with that little vigor I doubt it will put out new roots. I expect that many of the verigated maples are similar. I know butterfly can be layered, but it sounds like a lot of people have had trouble with higaseyama (which grows like a weed for me). I realize these are not typical bonsai subjects, but they are beautiful trees.

Hopefully I will be layering several different varieties soon and well update with sucess and failures.

 

[WNC Bonsai]

I found this interesting method on YouTube. The guy uses potting soil and butter containers. Works well on figs but on my trees I think I might try to keep the soil moist and use a bonsai soil mix.

 

[b3bowen]

Arakawa in about 4 weeks. First variety to put out roots.


I hope people will share their sucesses And failures this year.

 

[WNC Bonsai]

Arakawa in about 4 weeks. First variety to put out roots.


I hope people will share their sucesses And failures this year.

Was that done this spring? I thought you had to wait until about late May before layering. Maybe I need to go ahead and get mine started now too.

 

[ysrgrathe]

You can start in winter if you like, although it won't grow significant roots until there are leaves to feed it.

 

[b3bowen]

This was started as buds started to extend (I usually do them as buds start to swell but was running behind). I like starting them this early since plants that respond this well will have a long season to establish before winter. Everything

 

[b3bowen]

Was that done this spring? I thought you had to wait until about late May before layering. Maybe I need to go ahead and get mine started now too.

This was started as buds started to extend, im zone 7 NC (I usually do them as buds start to swell but was running behind). I like starting them this early since plants that respond this well will have a long season to establish before winter. Everything I have read says to start layers as buds swell or once leaves harden. Not sure if there is truth to not starting during the intervening time though the plant above definitely had some soft growth when I placed the layer.

 

[jmw_bonsai]

This was started as buds started to extend, im zone 7 NC (I usually do them as buds start to swell but was running behind). I like starting them this early since plants that respond this well will have a long season to establish before winter. Everything I have read says to start layers as buds swell or once leaves harden. Not sure if there is truth to not starting during the intervening time though the plant above definitely had some soft growth when I placed the layer.

Arakawa in about 4 weeks. First variety to put out roots.


I hope people will share their sucesses And failures this year.

Nice!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I wanted to start earlier this year but life got in the way. Im thinking next weekend is the time! I haven't done any the last few years, so lots of sites to layer this year! If I don't wife is going to prune them away.

 

[Pitoon]

These were started 20APR. By mid summer these should be ready to cut off and be on their own. The key is to have enough roots on the plant to ensure survival during the winter.

Mikawa yatsubusa


Bihou


Viridis

 

[jmw_bonsai]

These were started 20APR. By mid summer these should be ready to cut off and be on their own. The key is to have enough roots on the plant to ensure survival during the winter.

Mikawa yatsubusa


Bihou


Viridis

Nice! Let us know how the Bihou and Viridis do!

 

[Pitoon]

Nice! Let us know how the Bihou and Viridis do!

Sure, i'll post the progress as time goes by. Hopefully the viridis puts out roots, hence why I only did one AL. Yesterday I did some more AL on normal AP. Still have so many more AL to do, just not enough time in the day to get to everything.

 

[namnhi]

These were started 20APR. By mid summer these should be ready to cut off and be on their own. The key is to have enough roots on the plant to ensure survival during the winter.

Mikawa yatsubusa
View attachment 240552

Bihou
View attachment 240553

Viridis
View attachment 240555

Am interested in the Mikawa Yatsubusa. Keep us posted.

 

[Pitoon]

Am interested in the Mikawa Yatsubusa. Keep us posted.

I did four successful AL last year on this tree. Those four are growing in their own pots at the moment. I did another four AL this year.....the mother tree is slowly getting shorter and shorter, lol. This cultivar pushes out roots extremely fast.