I am wondering about this maple??? It has a really nice red color too the leaves. A very rich burgundy. The leaves are not that delicate (I'll post a pic) and the bark has a red color that peeks out from underneath the grey (see image). The tree grows upright. Tape measure is set to 3 feet. Any ideas on this one???
Here is a shot of a dried leaf. Like I said, not as delicate as the other two larger maples in my yard. However, the upright nature of this one, as well as the red color really make it a nice tree--at least I really like it. Any ideas?
Almost forgot to add that this one is really slow growing. But I don't water much at all, and it is in full sun.
Thanks for the insight. After doing some googling it definitely has those qualities. Is this one also called "Bloodgood"? The fall color of this tree is spectacular--much nicer than the seiryu. Maybe it is because I have it in full sun and south facing that the leaves get so bright red(??) Actually all my maples are in full sun and south facing, but the color is really beautiful in this one. Too bad it is so slow growing--has not changed much in 2 years.
Bloodgood is a different cultivar Have a look at different trees pictured at different times of the year here: http://www.fujiyamagarden.com/ThePlants.html
Thanks for the link--great way to compare.. After looking at it, I am not sure what it is. the two are very similar. I remember seeing the nice light red/orange in the leaves--so that makes me think it might be an atroporpureum instead of the bloodgood (which I have seen, and I think is a darker purple). Or perhaps the color variation is beacuse I have it in full sun??? Is the bloodgood a slow grower too? This one seems to grow really slow--like I said, hardly changing in two years. I think the tree I have is at least 4-8 years old.
Perhaps you can tell me? A picture is located above--you can zoom up on it quite a bit. I don't know how to tell if it has been grafted. What would it mean if the tree was grafted??? What I like most about it is the fall color that gets to be a neon/red/orange like nothing else I have seen.
Couldn't tell if it was grafted, but a lot of maples sold as atropurpureum are seedlings. If you look near the bottom of the trunk you may see where it has healed where the root stock was cut off. There may be an obvious change in the bark appearance above the graft point. Any growth below the graft area may also be different than the growth above the graft area.
Even if it is not grafted, doesn't necessarily mean it is not a named cultivar, as it may have been propagated by another method. It's challenging to identify many of the maples. With TB, you can search "tight bark" in this forum by using the "search box" at the upper right of this page for information.
Okay. ?? I take it most named cultivars are grafted then??? Does this have to do with the inherent weak root stock on many maples??? I will post picvs one it blooms to see if I can get more certain ID. Like I said, I really like this tree and it seems to me to be less purple then the bloodgold--but maybe this has to do with the full sun (south facing) location it grows in.
Japanese maples seldom come true from seed. Grafting ensures the plant will be true to the characteristics of the mother plant
I see--as you can tell, I am pretty green. If plants have not been grafted what other methods can they be propogated by and become true to form--is seed the only method, and is it hit and miss???
Layering, cuttings, and sounds like tissue culture.. You will find a lot of helpful info searching "propagation" in this forum.
I have a tendency to think mine were not grafted since I don't see any obvious signs on the trees--but they are old so I cant really tell what to look for--who knows??? Originally they were planted by what I was told was a relatively well-known landscape designer who supposedly designed the landscape for several houses on my block. Of course that was 30 years ago when my house was in a very desirable location. Things have changed since then to say the least, but I am inclined to believe the trees were probably from a decent sourceof course I dont really have a clue, and don't know how to tell what from what.
Don't know how 'Seiryu', which one of your trees seems to be, is on it's own roots, but any graft scar may not be obvious after 30 years. A neighbour nurseryman, in Maple Ridge, starts many maples by air layering .
