New here on the forum but seems like we have a few with growing/proprogation background here. Riddle me this . Sometime from specialized JM nurseries/sellers, I will see a 1G and 2G sized plant offering. On their 2G at times, it's a really long leader - maybe 6-7 feet easily.... As a guess, did the proprogator cut a really long scion and mated it to the understock for one growing season for selling ? Or is it 2 growing seasons, in which the scion may have started out 2 feet and it just grew 4-5 extra feet over 2 seasons in the nursery to the leader length that it was. I suppose it can be one more growing season but that just takes up room and overhead.... In the world of plants, I actually don't find them expensive. Someone has housed it , watered it, etc for X amount of time ......
A simple google search will show you how grafting of Japanese maples is done in general. Also would give you time lines on growth rates, after care, etc. Here is how we grafted, several different approaches are used. This worked best for our growing / geographical zone:
See OP. My question was in regards to scion/understock......and how long is it grown from grafting to selling Specifically, smaller independent JM centric nursery I presume understock may come in 2-3 varying thickness to mate the Scion.... How that translates to how many years held:grown by the grower is the question Or simply put, if I see a 2G sized plant with a single leader that is easily 6-7 feet high, Was it simply because that cultivar was a more fast/faster growing and in the right **growing*** conditions and longer scion.........the 2G 7 FT tall plant being solid is a one year plant from grafting:crop release. I find it slightly interesting if that is the case. Or is more the latter (which I don't see as plants take up space - and who want's to hold it for another selling season ) but it was grown for at least 2 years from grafting for selling purposes .
I was responding to your part of the post when you mentioned: Root stock needs to be a certain caliber in order for a good graft rate success. We would always graft onto a 4 year old root stock, so again a slow process even before the grafting starts. We would always raise the grafted tree for 2 years before taking to market, and that would be in a one gallon pot. Many trees we would hold for several years and sell in sizes ranging from 2 - 10 gallon pots and price accordingly. To answer the rest of your post in my best estimate, many large nurseries just don't take the time to prune and shape a young plant before going to retail outlets. Hence the long "leader". And yes many varieties do grow much quicker then others. But again that is in part because shoppers want a "big" tree, even when it comes to Japanese maples. Often big retail shops sell limited varieties and often the faster growing ones. So many gardeners are unaware of the very slow growth rate of many of the japanese maple varieties. That is why forums like this really educate and inform most people that are interested in adding Japanese maples to their garden. Most important is your gardening zone, then your gardening space, and finally what tree you really like that fits the criteria.
Actually, the stuff I see from wholesales- nurseries out here......same cultivar. Box/Speciemen Sizes appear pruned right. I want a single leader plant....so I can decide where it's topped ? On the same cultivar I saw this year, in their 5G plant, it was topped around 18-24 inches, and few Wyes/leaders......I would not want this as I don't want something topped so low to start off with. Pretty reputable wholesaler/nursery n the trades afaik - Iseli Back on topic, here goes a pic from a single store JM grower - nursery. Was curious if this was a large long scion or simply either grown/held for 2 years or was it grown to that height in 1 years time from grafting https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/bvnq...34_n.jpg?rlkey=m73o87pf0m6lt0jcao9ndr15l&dl=0
Sometimes young japanese maples are over fertilized to increase the growth rate for the unsuspecting buyer. This often leads to a long single lead stem. Hard to tell if that is a grafted or seedling specimen? You would have to have a close up photo of the graft union, the picture does not reveal that at all. If it is grafted, just looking at the caliber, it would be at least 2-3 years after the graft imo. And again without seeing the variety, some grow much quicker then other varieties.
It's grafted. Just pushing N has the potential to push a leader height of the pic in 1 season ? Granted side branching is a bit -meh- on the example I am showing. Granted, if the grower has *held* it for 2 years minimum, which I presume, then to me, like I said in the original post, I don't find plants expensive at all.....relatively speaking when you look at growth/years curated for as such...... One thing I have learned , especially with JM mail orders is asking for a pic if they are open to sending them and a specific instruction of (please send me a leader that has not been topped) in addition to asking about graft height. I have received one JM that while it wasn't a high graft, it sure was a lollipop. I was so disappointed that it wasn't on my radar to clarify graft height and what I received.....I ended selling the plant locally. More importantly, and sometimes it's not on my radar until I forget - but no topped plants
I should grab a pic of the rootstock of the JM cultivar I drove 10 hrs for - 4/12 there 5+hrs back. I was going to leave without grabbing the cultivar but I was already there - time and gas spent so I grabbed it. 1st JM that was not side grafted but V cleft grafted. Not sure what the pros'cons of V cleft is just short of higher rate of graft taking due to more cambium on both sides touching ?
Years ago, the only form of mail order Japanese maples was in winter, bare root and dormant that I can recall. And also generally a very young graft. Now they are very common to be delivered in the pot, just add water and away you go. And yes, young trees will grow at a rapid distorted rate with excess fertilizer. Do not be mislead by a "leader" stem to decide on the size / shape / or height of a tree. A carefully pruned young tree will branch out and still reach whatever height the variety will grow to. It also will enhance nice side growth and give a young plant a very nice shape right from the start. I totally understand mail order trees having a long leader, mainly because it is much easier for the grower to ship the tree in a box that does not require much width at all and greatly reduce the shipping costs. With grafting, a Japanese maple grafted as a "high standard", for example a dissectum (weeping) variety to give a unique look will have the graft 3-4' above the ground. Other then that, in general all grafts are done 4"-5" above the base of the root stock. It still allows for an opportunity to graft the same root stock the following year if the graft does not take as you could use the 2"-4" remaining window to try again.
