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Discussion in 'Maples' started by irshmerc, Sep 30, 2021.

  1. irshmerc

    irshmerc Member

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    Hi Lads, how you doing

    New here but been lurking for a while, I have sort of inherited a few trees and have no clue how to look after them, most of which i can't identify either.

    I think i have added a few pictures because we all like pictures right.

    As you can see the two large green trees are in need of pruning and are currently shading out the red tree in the middle of them, I will tackle this soon, so any suggestions are most welcome.

    I live in the south of Ireland and have a south facing garden.

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    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 30, 2021
  2. wcutler

    wcutler Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator VCBF Cherry Scout 10 Years

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    Welcome, irshmerc. I was unable to get your photos to show, except for the one, but the links now work. The top set and the bottom set are the same (I tried a few different things).
    When you add more photos, please first have a look at Attach photos and files.
     
    Last edited: Sep 30, 2021
  3. maf

    maf Generous Contributor Maple Society 10 Years

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    Hi @irshmerc, you have three nice Japanese maples there, not enough to go on for cutivar ID's, but the two large ones could possibly be something in the 'Katsura' group . If you post pictures of the new leaves next spring we might get a better idea.

    The red one has kept a good red colour by the look of it so the shading is probably not too bad yet. It would be good to know which side is south. I am guessing the red one gets a fair bit of sun at certain times of the day, from either the southwest or southeast. Minimal pruning is what I would suggest at this stage, just those branches that directly shade or touch the smaller tree.
     
  4. irshmerc

    irshmerc Member

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    Hi,

    Ok i see i messed up the pictures and am now trying again.....
    Thanks Wendy

    maf, thanks, they are nice trees though no credit for them can be had by me. Your correct the trees run in a line north to south so the red one does get its fair share of southwest sun in the afternoon. Happy to carry out minimal pruning of the two large green trees, would i be better off waiting until the leaves have fallen or could i make a start now, a couple of those pictures i took yesterday and as you can see there are still plenty of colour to come.
    Thanks,much appreciated
     

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  5. maf

    maf Generous Contributor Maple Society 10 Years

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    They look nice still. On the red tree you can clearly see, in one of the pics, that the side that gets the sun is still red while the shaded side has gone green. The trick with the pruning is opening up a bit more light for the smaller tree without ruining the shape of the larger ones, hence why I suggested minimal pruning. Assess each small branch on an individual basis and cut back where it joins a larger one. Now is a good time to prune but you may also be able to see more about the branch structure after the leaves have fallen. The main time to avoid for pruning is February to May when the sap is rising as this can lead to excessive bleeding. (Dead wood can be removed at any time.)

    Long term, you might have to accept that the shaded side of the red tree will never be as colourful as the sunny side, and live with it.
     
  6. irshmerc

    irshmerc Member

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    Jeez maf your up early, yeah your spot on, the east side of the red tree is more green than red while the west side which gets more afternoon sun and is less shaded is still very red in comparison, i have the same red tree in another part of the garden in full sun all day and the colour difference is quite obvious, i'll get a picture for comparison later today, again i appreciate your knowledge.
     
    maf likes this.

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