Here are pics of two Twombly's Red Sentinel- looking for advice- purchase these or order online?

Discussion in 'Maples' started by james vee, Oct 1, 2021.

  1. james vee

    james vee New Member

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    As the title says, looking for advice before purchasing 2 Twombly's Red Sentinel.

    I've included pictures of two available at a nursery near me (Cleveland, Ohio area). The last picture is my skeeters broom purchased online earlier this year. The Twombly's are listed as 60" b&b trees. I've been told that these trees were shipped here from the west coast- whether that is accurate I do not know. I was surprised to see that the base of the truck splits near the ground on both trees- most pictures I've seen online are of a tree with just one distinct trunk.

    I believe they are healthy- but kind of hard to tell with the trees currently losing their leaves- sections of the new top growth are completely leafless. I guess I'm most concerned that these trunks are healthy/ normal for this cultivar. My skeeters broom (last pic) that was planted in June sure does look a lot prettier than these Twomblys currently! (I do understand it was not just dug up).

    Just looking for advice- these trees are available for 260 a piece. I have had success purchasing a maple online previously. I received a very healthy 5' skeeters broom earlier this year that I purchased for $180 with shipping cost from Oregon. This same seller has Twombly's Red Sentinel available at the same cost- would be $310 for two field grown 5' trees grown in root pouches shipped to me. Are these b&b tress maybe be a year, 2? ahead of what will be sent to me online? 200 dollar difference between the two options!

    What would you do! Please help me decide. Thank you very much in advance

    James
     

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  2. maf

    maf Generous Contributor Maple Society 10 Years

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    To be honest they don't look great. The long straight sticks at the top with leaf loss and some twig dieback is what you see when maples are moved out of a protected environment like a polytunnel and then exposed to sun and the elements, so there is good chance the info that these originally come from the west coast is correct. The choice then is between importing the trees from Oregon yourself or buying trees that were imported by someone else and have been sitting around in their B&B's in less than ideal conditions, in a parking lot, for who knows how long? I would import myself in a similar situation.

    Also, if you get decent amounts of snow in Cleveland the low down V's in the trunks are to be avoided if you don't want a tree split down the middle sometime in the future.

    Your own maple looks very healthy by comparison, you can justifiably feel confident in that supplier.

    The only slight question I would have is the timing of importing trees from a significantly milder climate at this time of year against waiting till the spring so they have longer to acclimatise to your area. Not sure how many zones difference between Oregon and Cleveland but you will have to weigh this up when making the decision.
     
  3. james vee

    james vee New Member

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    I cannot thank you enough for taking the time to reply to my post. You confirmed how I was feeling about the trees- I didn't feel that they looked like the healthiest trees when I saw them but I thought maybe it was just due to the time of year. I will order my Twombly's over the internet from the supplier that sent me the skeeters broom that I received in perfect health.

    You bring up a very good point regarding the time of year and temperature. I have been going back and forth on that as well. The tree would be leaving a garden zone of 8 in Oregon to come to my Cleveland zone 6 location. I have been reading trying to determine how much of a risk Cleveland winter would be to a newly planted maple. Im leaning towards just waiting until spring to place my order and get the trees in the ground.

    Thank you again for your advice.
     
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  4. maf

    maf Generous Contributor Maple Society 10 Years

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    No worries.

    That's what I would do, if you were to get them now you would be looking at bare branches for several months anyway. If you have a good relationship with the supplier maybe you can reserve the trees now for delivery next year. I would aim for delivery the same month you received the Skeeters Broom as that worked out well.
     
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  5. james vee

    james vee New Member

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    Thanks, that's what I'll do. I will be using the Twombly's along with emerald green arborvitae to create a privacy hedge. I've already purchased the arborvitae and will get those in the ground now and leave space for the maples next spring.

    I'm still debating how much room to leave for the Twombly's red Sentinel. I'm accounting for the arborvitae to grow to 3-4' width and just can't decide how much space to leave for the tree. Do you care to offer any advice? The various sites I've looked at show a 10 year width ranging from 4' all the way 10-12'. Was thinking about splitting the distance. I am looking for privacy and don't mind trimming. Any thoughts?
     
  6. maf

    maf Generous Contributor Maple Society 10 Years

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    I've never used Japanese maples in a hedge but for general hedge planting the spacing is closer than what the plants would spread if not in a hedge. For a traditional type hedge I would allow 4 or 5 feet for each maple I guess.
     

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