I bought an acer palmatum diss. viridis and planted it today. It is about 2 feet tall and has a vertical habit. At the very top, though, two bigger branches go out horizontally and it appears that it may grow out horizontally from this point. One of the two branches appears to bend downwards in a weeping form. I don't see a place of new growth or sprouting in this area. The nursery man told me that the way it is growing now indicates how it will continue to grow; i.e., if it has a vertical habit now, it will continue this way, most likely. He also said that whether it has a horizontal or vertical habit depends on where it was grafted. I am interested in having it grow as high as possible. Does a lower or higher graft relate to vertical habit? How does one tell where it was grafted? Is there a way to prune it to encourage it to grow more vertically? Also, I would like an explanation of the grafting process. Is this something done so that the plant will be green (rather than red)? That is what one of the nursery people said. Thanks for your help. Lora
Hi Lora, I'm not an expert on Japanese maples, but I can answer some of your questions or refer you to sites. You might want to post what I can't answer in the Maples forum section. Yes, it determines where the weeping part will start. The higher the graft, the taller the tree will grow before it starts to weep. difference between a high graft tree and a low graft tree You should be able to see what looks like a seam. You could remove the lowest branches above the graft. It won't make it grow any taller, but will make more of the trunk visible when it's small. You can also choose a leader and stake it. http://www.mountainmaples.com/WS4D_Cookie=5.24.04_17,39,13_15/ART_prune.html http://www.mountainmaples.com/WS4D_Cookie=5.21.05_14,43,10_13/photoessays/pruning/index.html http://www.actionvideo.freeserve.co.uk/grafting.htm It's done to duplicate the particular maple. Why are maples grafted? Here's the main page of the Mountain Maples site. Lots of stuff to click on. http://www.mountainmaples.com/WS4D_Cookie=5.21.05_14,49,34_10/index.html Newt
