Confused is my middle name... I purchased a JM Bloodgood and looking online a little deeper I am realizing that so many sites give me conflicting information about it. Are there variations in the Bloodgood "line"? Some sites (and like the tag on my tree!!) state a growth of 15-20' (which is a big factor why I purchased as I did not want a tree bigger then 20') and now I am reading alot of other sites stating a close to 30' growth...that is a big difference. What's up with that? How can info be so different? Some places state you can plant these 'small trees' close to your house foundation as they have non-invasive roots and won't cause damage and others state not to do this. How many feet away from my house should I plant it? Is there a web site with real accurate information? Or is there just so many variations to Bloodgood that it is hard to find out what the real deal is. Even some nurseries I visited gave me conflicting info although I did end up purchasing at Lowes. Some say a medium growth rate others slow. How many years approximately does it take a JM Bloodgood to reach maturity height? (I know growing conditions affect rate but just roughly) Thanks in advance.
No trees grow to a particular, generally predictable height and then come to a complete, permanent halt - while remaining healthy and attractive. A tree that is not growing is in a state of decline. Plan on the 30' in this case, if you saw it get that tall within your time on the site and that would be way too big, then choose something smaller-growing.
How big was the tree when you bought it? How suitable is your planting area? How agreeable are your climatic conditions? How long do you plan to live? Really your question is impossible to answer Bloodgood is a fine tree, but it is not one of the smallest you could have bought :)
I would estimate somewhere between 100 and 200 years. Since 'Bloodgood' has not been propagated for that length of time, no-one can know what the mature height might be.
I have been collecting cultivars for around 5 years now and have come to the conclusion that most references are siting a 'best guess' in a 10-20 year window, at least for my particular growing area. I have also come to the conclusion that Vertrees is referencing conditions that maples are likely to experience in the Pacific Northwest. From my experience in the southeast, our growing seasons are much longer and warmer than the Northwest and our growth is consequently much greater than any references I find. For example, I have a friend and collector who planted 3 red Japanese maples by his home 30 years ago when it was built (perhaps 'Bloodgood' or just form atropurpureum) that are each in the 20 to 30 foot x 20 foot range already. I agree completely that many variables determine growth rate including health of tree and in particular vigor of rootstock the maple was grafted on, soil type, soil fertility, available moisture, etc etc etc and know that all healthy maples grow indefinetely. As a general rule, young maples grow rapidly and slow with age but this is highy variable. If space is an issue, look at Pixie, Shaina, Skeeters Broom, Elizabeth, Royle, Aratama or any of the other dwarf forms that are out their. Justin
Vertrees lived and gardened in Roseburg, which has pretty hot summers. Not as torrid as the Gulf States but nevertheless the Willamette Valley and vicinity is a major agricultural and horticultural production area, with excellent growth of ornamental crops being produced when summer irrigation is used. Although in the same region Vancouver, Seattle and Portland and their surrounding areas all have horticulturally significant differences between them. Sunset Publishing designates several different climate zones for parts of coastal BC, western WA and western OR. For example, Sunset 4 is drawn over Vancouver while by the time we get down the map to Roseburg we are looking at the bottom end of Sunset 6, near the start of the quite hot and dry (in summer) Sunset 7.
