Trident maple - finally looking good

[davetree]

Here is a trident maple that i have had for 5 years. As you can see, it was an ugly tree when purchased. The roots were bad, the leader was skinny, and tree did not have a pleasing shape. I placed it in a very large pot to grow it out for the next 4 years. Well, the roots fused, the base swelled, the cuts healed, and the trunk matured into a very beautiful shape. The ugly duckling has grown into a swan. Ideas for a pot next spring ?

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

Greet improvement on that trunk!

 

[Smoke]

Really looking nice. Pot? I have no idea about your climate so I will leave that up to you, but the tree has progressed remarkably.

Nice job, Al

 

[davetree]

This trident is about 20 inches tall with a 6 inch trunk.

 

[davetree]

I can grow trees in shallow pots here if that's what you mean by climate. Thanks for your comments. When my teacher first saw this tree he said "Ugh, take it back !". Five years later I am not sure if he knows it is the same tree because he just says, "really nice taper on this one".

 

[Smoke]

Love those tridents. I'm gonna get rid of everything else and just concentrate on tridents and a few other deciduous trees. It's just too damn hot here for conifers to thrive.

 

[Smoke]

When I first looked at your tree as it is now...I was wondering how it may look with a lower branch on the left side.


Now looking at it some more I like the asymetrical look of the canopy. If it had a left branch it would look too much like a pine. As it is now it is very much more abstract and that is a good thing.

 

[davetree]

This trident is about 20 inches tall with a 6 inch trunk.

 

[JudyB]

Good going davetree! I would look for an oval or round for this one, and something with a coloration somewhat like your first pot... It would set the bark off nicely, and not pull attention from that nice trunk. If you can find one with some kind of crackling finish, or texture, that's what I'd suggest. But what do I know...

 

[davetree]

This is the pot I have planned for it ...we'll see when it gets repotted.

 

[not_sponsored]

Wow, great improvement, do you have any details/photos from the progress?

 

[Smoke]

This is the pot I have planned for it ...we'll see when it gets repotted.View attachment 24963

Really nice pot but take a word of advice. Do not plant tridents in pots with inward curved lips. They grow so fast that by the end of the year the pot is full of roots. At repot time you will do alot of damage to the root ball to extract it. Just look for a pot that has sides that will be easy to release.

 

[Alex DeRuiter]

Dave, that tree is incredible! You've done an awesome job with it. I hope that I can make my trees look that impressive in five years!

 

[Alex DeRuiter]

Really nice pot but take a word of advice. Do not plant tridents in pots with inward curved lips. They grow so fast that by the end of the year the pot is full of roots. At repot time you will do alot of damage to the root ball to extract it. Just look for a pot that has sides that will be easy to release.

Matt Ouwinga has more-or-less said the same exact thing to me. We did some repotting earlier this year on a bunch of root-bound Tridents that had only been in their pots for a season or two. Very useful advice!

 

[davetree]

This is one of Matt Ouinga's trees, a Korean import. It gets very small leaves that turn pumpkin orange in the fall. For four years it did nothing but grow. It has only really been trained for a year and a half. Al, the pot has only slightly inward curved sides. I am used to hacking a few maples out of this kind of pot during repotting. You need to have a very sharp knife.

 

[edprocoat]

Very nice tree, great job. So far I have tried one Japanese Maple, and lets just say its not a pretty sight right now. I researched Japanese Maples and by all accounts a trident would be perfect for me, both in climate up north and Florida climate too. I found one site online that has them for sale Telperion farms, I knew right away just by looking at the work they performed on them that they were way beyond my price range, but man, what desirable trees! Perhaps if I hit the lottery I will buy two and hire Mr. Miyagi to care for it for me...

ed

 

[davetree]

As to maples in curved pots - I treat them just like my shohin, they get repotted every year just to be safe. With my maples, I can cut the roots back really hard or moderately, but they get repotted every year regardless.

 

[Xavier]

Here is a trident maple that i have had for 5 years. As you can see, it was an ugly tree when purchased. The roots were bad, the leader was skinny, and tree did not have a pleasing shape. I placed it in a very large pot to grow it out for the next 4 years. Well, the roots fused, the base swelled, the cuts healed, and the trunk matured into a very beautiful shape. The ugly duckling has grown into a swan. Ideas for a pot next spring ?


View attachment 24961View attachment 24962

Beautiful tree.

 

[JudyB]

Can't wait to see it in the new pot. Did you go with the one you showed a pic of?

And I'd love to see that baby with fall color.