Trident Maple Needs a Radical Overhaul

[Paulpash]

Hi,

2 seasons ago we had a very severe Winter in the UK which nearly killed this tree. It was severely weakened and had suffered a number of setbacks - die back in a significant proportion of the trunk as well as several key roots.

This year it has got stronger and is pushing shoots both on the branches and a few popping on the trunk (or bole - thanks Al et Poink!).

The material was never stellar - more Uranus - so I guess a new direction is needed and I was looking for advice and a plan. The long strip of dead bark will mean it will be hard to get a balanced branch structure out of it if it stays at the same height which I doubt anyway due to poor taper. Please take a look at the pics and see if anything can be made out of this sow's ear!

Pic ~1 Nebari - high root on right will need removing
Pic ~ 2 Nebari from a different angle - note bud popping around 3 inches from soil level
Pic ~ 3 Nebari and base of tree - note that die back starts here and runs to the top of the tree
Pic ~4 / 5 Dieback voids - you can just see the two parallel vertical cracks where the wood has died.

 

[Paulpash]

More pics ..

Pic ~ 6 Die back goes all the way up to the apex
Pic ~ 7 Better at the back - more branches
Pic ~ 8 Another apex shot
Pic ~ 9 Foliage cut back to expose trunk more - as you can see it is quite vigorous and rebudding after the pruning.

One final question - what is the filesize limit per pic ?

Hope these are OK enough to offer some advice...

 

[Beetleman72]

this tree reminds me a lot of a tree that i saw in a forest planting at the nc arboretum that looks very similar to this one. maybe you could do something along these lines

 

[JudyB]

Beetle man has posted a pic of what I was thinking could work for this tree, some sort of damaged but still living tree.

 

[Paulpash]

Carving in order ... maybe hollowing and shari? Trunk line is very straight still

 

[Beetleman72]

The trunk was very straight on the tree at the arboretum but with the hollowed trunk facing toward you and the curvy scraggly branches give it some movement and distract from the straightness of the trunk.

 

[Smoke]

Hi,


This year it has got stronger and is pushing shoots both on the branches and a few popping on the trunk (or bole - thanks Al et Poink!).

keep in mind that my use of the word bole, is the intersection of the trunk where the tree stops rooting and above the soil where the branches form. Some people call this the crown also.

In the exchange when I used the word "bole" it was beacuse someone talked of deadheading a tree in the bole area of the trunk. It is in this area where a shoot forming is very untrustworthy with out a bud there already.

The word "bole" is not really interchangable with the word "trunk" for all intents and purposes.

In Japan this lower portion of the trunk which is dicy is known as the "Tachiagari".

 

[Paulpash]

Thanks for clearing that up. Al do you have any of your candid advice for the tree?

 

[jk_lewis]

You're in the north of England. A trident may need a bit of protection up there in the winter, but I have a friend in Scotland who grows them successfully as bonsai.

That planting in the NC Arboretum, which is just a few miles north of where I live, is a very old, quite large tree (the whole planting is almost 4 feet wide).

I'd suggest a severe trunk chop (or, if you feel unhurried, air layer quite low on the trunk). I'd also plant the tree in a pot that is a bit deeper than its current pot appears to be to give the roots some protection.