What to do with leggy maple

[thumblessprimate1]

What is the point of wiring such a young seedling?

I'm putting some movement into it early on. It's for the same reason why when I'm looking at nursery stock I pick out certain trees.

Nursery stock usually hasn't been repeatedly cut back to give movement. It has movement because it was a funny seedling or cutting, maybe competed with other nearby plants, or got dropped a few times.

Having some control, I put the movements in with use of wiring. Some even grow seedlings under a screen like Al aka Bananaman. Wiring later it would be impossible to put in as much twists and turns. If you're not into that much movement, you might skip this. Still I think this can be useful.

 

[M. Frary]

Some even grow seedlings under a screen like Al aka Bananaman

Or like bananaman says to also do,plant seedlings at an angle to make sure the trunk doesnt orient itself straight up out of the ground.

 

[clem]

that's not true. every sacrifice will leave a scar. The more sacrifices= the more scars. And if you grow branches now, they will be to thick to be proportinate once you hace a decent trunk

Yes you'll have more scars but the scars will be smaller. And if you have many sacrifice branches at different level of the tree you can get better conicity IMO

PS : you can see sometimes on Kokufu palmatum trees some scars on the base of the trunk : it was some branches/trunks that have been cut

 

[clem]

@pbrown00

here is an answer of a Japanese master, specializing in palmatum trees production, concerning the use of the ground or the wooden box :

My question :
Q- Do palmatum trees , during the years of formation, are during a few years grown in the field or always stay in a flat & large training pot ?
The Shisho answer :
A * Large wooden box is better than the ground. In order to make the trunk fat quickly, some people plant the tree in the ground. But in this way, the skin of the trunk and branches don't turn beautiful. They might be good to sell as you can produce them quickly but for yourself, it's better not.

 

[AlainK]

here is an answer of a Japanese master

Hear, hear! (C'est curieux, j'ai l'impression d'avoir lu ça tout-à-l'heure... )

I tried both and I support that. Even if you put a slate under the roots, or anything to have a good nebari, there are more chances that one big root will grow on one side. In a grow box, you can turn it every other week for the sun and the shade on the leaves to vary and the roots will grow more evenly.

 

[clem]

Hear, hear! (C'est curieux, j'ai l'impression d'avoir lu ça tout-à-l'heure... )

Lol, yes, but you notice i put his reponse on my favorite forum first

 

[pbrown00]

Yep, I agree with that! I'm definitely gonna stick to grow boxes.

 

[River's Edge]

What is the point of wiring such a young seedling?

Movement in the trunk low down that allows cutback, change of direction for taper development. Grow the trunk first for maples then branches, Trunks grow faster from sacrifice leader growth, rather than side branch thickness. this only changes if the side branch becomes the new leader. This thread contains a lot of misinformation supplied by people who have obviously not grown maples for any length of time. Unfair to those seeking help!
1. let the maples grow in larger containers or the ground.
2. Work the roots to improve nebari each year for the first three or four years to set the pattern.
3. Let it grow for the full season each year for three to five years and cut back early spring. They will grow 6-8 feet each year.
4. If you do decide to keep some side branches during this process then prune them to keep them from getting to thick.
5. For a guideline you could start with the following suggestion. year one cut back to 3 inches above nebari.
year two cut back to six inches above nebari, year three cut back to 9 inches above nebari. Obviously this is just a starting suggestion and each grower will decide what works for the style and size of tree desired.
For example if a broom is desired then the tree may be supported to grow perfectly straight and only cut when the base has reached the desired thickness. This may mean letting it grow for five years without cutting back in a major way.
The methods vary based on the desired outcome, but the principles of growth, development and refinement remain the same.
Proper growth requires developing a proper rootball in the right conditions. Correct pruning techniques will produce the desired results.

 

[pbrown00]

Movement in the trunk low down that allows cutback, change of direction for taper development. Grow the trunk first for maples then branches, Trunks grow faster from sacrifice leader growth, rather than side branch thickness. this only changes if the side branch becomes the new leader. This thread contains a lot of misinformation supplied by people who have obviously not grown maples for any length of time. Unfair to those seeking help!
1. let the maples grow in larger containers or the ground.
2. Work the roots to improve nebari each year for the first three or four years to set the pattern.
3. Let it grow for the full season each year for three to five years and cut back early spring. They will grow 6-8 feet each year.
4. If you do decide to keep some side branches during this process then prune them to keep them from getting to thick.
5. For a guideline you could start with the following suggestion. year one cut back to 3 inches above nebari.
year two cut back to six inches above nebari, year three cut back to 9 inches above nebari. Obviously this is just a starting suggestion and each grower will decide what works for the style and size of tree desired.
For example if a broom is desired then the tree may be supported to grow perfectly straight and only cut when the base has reached the desired thickness. This may mean letting it grow for five years without cutting back in a major way.
The methods vary based on the desired outcome, but the principles of growth, development and refinement remain the same.
Proper growth requires developing a proper rootball in the right conditions. Correct pruning techniques will produce the desired results.

Thank you, this is incredibly helpful!