Dancing peacock Girdling root

Discussion in 'Maples' started by ceriano, May 27, 2022.

  1. ceriano

    ceriano Member

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    I’m considering getting this dancing peacock but the roots are girdling and looks like they have grown over the stake. Is this a big problem? I’m looking to plant it in the garden so air layering is not an option.
     

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  2. Acerholic

    Acerholic Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator VCBF Cherry Scout Maple Society

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    @ceriano, there is some major root pruning to be done, but it can be achieved. There is risk though as it's major surgery. Looking at the Aconitifolium or Dancing Peacock, it appears that the price will be quite high, so if it were me, I would be rather cautious, as the surgery could be too much. Now I have removed laege girdling roots to one of my old maples and all went well. But if it hadn't, I would have not lost a lot of money in the process.
    I carried out the procedure in late Winter btw and everything healed in a few months.
    So IMHO in this circumstance it's a 50/50 call.
     
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  3. dicky5ash

    dicky5ash Generous Contributor

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    I dont think it looks bad tbh….wrapping right round is the issue..a section round then away isn’t a problem imo
     
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  4. maf

    maf Generous Contributor Maple Society 10 Years

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    It is less than ideal but realistically nothing bad is going to happen - it is not a tall, fast growing tall tree but a low shrubby maple. Get rid of the bamboo cane for sure but leave the roots and they will eventually fuse together, it will not be the best looking root flare but hey-ho...
     
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  5. ROEBUK

    ROEBUK Generous Contributor Maple Society 10 Years

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    As Derek said this can be resolved but it's a case of do you feel confident enough in doing this your self ?? Firstly if you bought this i would leave it until the fall before i started any work on it , thankfully it's in a container so this will make the job slightly easier , it's just a case of removing it from the container then getting rid of all the old growing medium then giving those roots a good cleaning ( i always use a power washer) so you can see where you need to remove the problem roots and that piece of wood?
    Added a few pics of a large ground grown garnet i did some years back this had some girdling issues which were soon resolved though , just a case of looking at the roots carefully and making a plan on the best way to remove the ones causing the problems.
     

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  6. ceriano

    ceriano Member

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    The regular price is $500 but it’s on sale for $320. That’s why it’s really tempting :) not cheap but I don’t think I can’t find another one for this price
     
  7. ceriano

    ceriano Member

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    Thanks for the tip. This is very helpful!
    I have done a few root pruning but never on a $500 tree.
     
  8. emery

    emery Renowned Contributor Maple Society 10 Years

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    The bamboo stake is no issue at all; just cut it and remove as much as possible with a concave pruner. The big roots will pleach and be fine. It's some other roots, as in pics 5/7/8 that will largely have to be removed. And you can't see where the larger roots go once they get under ground.

    So a lot of root that needs to come off, for certain, and you wont really know how much until you get it out and the soil off. It could have plenty of root left, in which case it's a good deal; or lose most of the feeder roots, in which case it will be considerably weakened, and the stress may bring other issues. Have you looked at the root ball? I'll bet if they let it get this far, it's probably solid with roots.

    So it's a gamble. Personally I'd never buy this many problems intentionally, and $300 isn't all that cheap either.
     

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