Which is best to limit long internodes?

[Mike Corazzi]

On the off chance that a ......couple.... maples don't fry this year, which is best to limit long internodes?
Let the spindly, wibbly, new growth extend and harden?
or
Clip internodes as they form the growth?

 

[MrWunderful]

Pinching and fert control.

 

[Shibui]

Techniques vary according to how advanced the trees are.

With young, developing stock I usually allow spring growth to go. Most internodes will be long. Later in spring or early summer all long internodes are removed even if that means pruning back to last year's wood. New shoots will form and are usually more restrained with shorter internodes. Any with long internodes can be removed again. Eventually the growth will be more restrained.
Less N fert also helps to restrict internode length.

Older trees that already have a good canopy and good ramification are tip pruned as soon as new shoots start to elongate. Even before the first leaves have opened out the tiny leaves are separated and the growing tip between them is pinched. According to tradition this is supposed to stop the shoot elongating but in practise I still sometimes get internodes longer than I want.

The best cure for long internodes I have found is to develop lots of ramification. Many shoots share the tree's available energy so each is less vigorous.

 

[Mike Corazzi]

"Many shoots share the tree's available energy so each is less vigorous."

That answers my question.

 

[rodeolthr]

I agree with @Shibui , this is the same technique that I use.

 

[Adair M]

It depends!

@Shibui gave you good advice, but one thing he failed to mention: Japanese maples are different than Trident maples.

Japanese maples should be pinched as soon as possible when the new shoots emerge. They will form very short internodes, then new shoots will develop in a couple weeks that should be pinched again. This is for “normal” Japanese maples. Some “fancy” J. maples are not as vigorous, and should not be pinched. But typical J. Maple seedlings can be.

Trident Maples are different. They should be allowed to grow out to 6 or 8 pairs of leaves, then cut back to one or two pairs. Those first couple internodes are short. They typically only start to get long after they have made 4 or 5 pairs of leaves.

Why shouldn’t you pinch Trudents like Japanese Maples? If you do, they will bud back, but that node will start to become knobby. You get an unsightly bulge. You don’t want that. You want nice evenly tapering branches, not knobby branches. So, let Tridents grow out, then cut back.

 

[Mike Corazzi]

It depends!

@Shibui gave you good advice, but one thing he failed to mention: Japanese maples are different than Trident maples.

Japanese maples should be pinched as soon as possible when the new shoots emerge. They will form very short internodes, then new shoots will develop in a couple weeks that should be pinched again. This is for “normal” Japanese maples. Some “fancy” J. maples are not as vigorous, and should not be pinched. But typical J. Maple seedlings can be.

Trident Maples are different. They should be allowed to grow out to 6 or 8 pairs of leaves, then cut back to one or two pairs. Those first couple internodes are short. They typically only start to get long after they have made 4 or 5 pairs of leaves.

Why shouldn’t you pinch Trudents like Japanese Maples? If you do, they will bud back, but that node will start to become knobby. You get an unsightly bulge. You don’t want that. You want nice evenly tapering branches, not knobby branches. So, let Tridents grow out, then cut back.

I'm asking only about TWO measly "sticks in pots."
Maples hate my climate.
These are itty bittys. Quite dense. AND.... the internodes aren't objectionable....yet. I used to cut quick. Then I'd get vigorous spindly half-transparent strings coming out.

I need challenges.

 

[leatherback]

Why shouldn’t you pinch Trudents like Japanese Maples? If you do, they will bud back, but that node will start to become knobby. You get an unsightly bulge. You don’t want that. You want nice evenly tapering branches, not knobby branches. So, let Tridents grow out, then cut back.

those little nuggets hidden in random threads! One I did not know, have not heard this before.
Learned something. It is a good day!

 

[Adair M]

I'm asking only about TWO measly "sticks in pots."
Maples hate my climate.
These are itty bittys. Quite dense. AND.... the internodes aren't objectionable....yet. I used to cut quick. Then I'd get vigorous spindly half-transparent strings coming out.

I need challenges.

Then why did you post the thread?

 

[Adair M]

those little nuggets hidden in random threads! One I did not know, have not heard this before.
Learned something. It is a good day!

Yep.

I learned this little thing about Tridents, by accident. Well, not exactly...

As you know, I’m a pine guy. But one day, Boon grabbed me as we were walking past a tree in his garden. It was an absolutely gorgeous root over rock Trident. He pointed to it and said, “don’t do that!” And walked away.

Huh? I looked again, and I thought it was fabulous! Great roots, great taper, great ramification... what’s wrong with it? I looked at it, in great detail, for about 5 minutes. I couldn’t figure out “what not to do!”

So, I had to go ask. Boon said, go look at the buds. So, I did. And then I saw the knobs. I went over to another tree on another bench. No knobs. Ah ha! I was on to something!

So, I told Boon I saw the knobs. He said, “Yes, he pinch it. Makes knobs. I told him to come take this tree. I don’t want it in my garden.” So, the story is the tree belonged to one of Boon’s customers, who kept a lot of trees at Boon’s garden. But, he wouldn’t follow Boon’s techniques on Trident Maple. Boon didn’t want anyone to see things in his garden that weren’t done “properly”, so he asked the customer to come get his tree!

 

[bwaynef]

Just like you handle building ramification differently in pines, you handle maples differently as well. As Adair mentioned, its important to "influence" the length of the first node on Japanese Maples by pinching them, and letting a Trident run before pruning it back to its first short internode.

 

[Mike Corazzi]

Then why did you post the thread?

Usual reason. Thought it was Match.com