Liquidambar - Mini Forest Weirdness

Firstflush

Chumono
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I have this set of Liquidambars I arranged. Have lost 2. The remaining 3 are growing nicely. Nice low branching. The small pot definitely is restricting growth. They were seedlings from the wild about 3-4 years ago. I’m going to keep the arrangement and up pot.

Question: 2 lost their leaves as a result of overwatering during a big heatwave we had. They are budding out now, right before they will be dropping their leaves for winter. One tree kept all its leaves.

Do you have forests where trees acted differently for unknown reasons?

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CptnGlyn

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If your forest is comprised of collected seedlings then there will be genetic variation between them. This can result in something minor like different shades of leaf or bark, or something more ‘problematic’ like different growth rates or tolerances.

I say problematic like that because once you are aware of the difference between the trees then you can try to tend to their needs.

Many forests are grown from Airlayers or cuttings to be more uniform. Yours having variation adds a nice interesting touch (in my opinion) 👍🏻
 

penumbra

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agreed^^^^
Also, it looks like your foliated plant has a bit of chlorosis. It may be a pH issue or nutrient deficiency.
 

Firstflush

Chumono
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They were seedlings from under the same tree. We will see how much genetic differences there are.
It was just fed regarding the chlorosis….too much water again.
 

penumbra

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They were seedlings from under the same tree. We will see how much genetic differences there are.
It was just fed regarding the chlorosis….too much water again.
Not to argue the point, but Sweet Gum, like Red Maple, generally grows well in lower damper places and in heavy soil. It is really hard to over water them.
 

CptnGlyn

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They were seedlings from under the same tree. We will see how much genetic differences there are.
It was just fed regarding the chlorosis….too much water again.
Even if the parent tree is the same, seedlings will show a wide range, In much the same way as human siblings.

Regarding the chlorosis, as Penumbra says, overwatering is likely to be difficult (unless there is a drainage issue) so it might be worth grabbing a cheap pH test kit next time you are at a garden centre or hardware store… liquidambar prefer an acidic soil to alkaline.
 

Gabler

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Have you resolved the chlorosis issue? I’ve been dealing with chlorosis in my own sweetgum forest planting, and I’m not sure why it’s affecting only some of the trees in the planting.
 
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