Staking and Training an Orangeola -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hi this is my first time to the forum but am SOOO glad I stumbled upon it - I have an atrocious garden! :( To begin with, I am getting ready to buy a 3yr old Orangeola and have a lot of questions. The tree has never been staked and is approx. 18" x 30 ". I love the ornate wandering trunk look (similar to George's Viridis) but don't really know where to begin. I would like the eventual height to reach approx. 8 ft (to frame a picture window) . . . what do I do? Does this apear to even be a good specimen? Secondly, simple question. Am I dead? This japanese maple was going to be bulldozed to create a wider driveway. So we dug it up and moved it from a friends house in a hope to save it. I had previous damage and water suckers when we moved it that have since died. Is it salvagable? The leaves stayed red and healthy until about mid-july (1 1/2 months after transplant). Thank you, thank you thank you for help. I really do appreciate it! Christy
Hello Parandiheads, The UBCBG Forums uses vB code. Your attachments cannot be displayed. Please see this: http://www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/forums/showthread.php?t=725
With the 'Orangeola' you will need to stake a young branch to the desired height. The other tree doen't look salvageable, too much trunk damage.
Hi and welcome! It's always great to meet another maple lover! Find the leader branch on your Orangeola and stake it upright. Be careful not to bend too much, as the trunk may snap. You may have to bend a main branch up little by little. Then as new branches grow out near the top of the tree, stake them upright...and so on until you reach the desired height. Unless you want a "tree form" (single trunk) Orangeola, I would recommend to stake new branchlets as it grows. That way you end up with an overlapping, well branched, pendulous tree. Orangeola is a real beauty by the way and pretty hardy as maples go. It is one of my favorites for sure and always seems to look great in my garden (even when the others are fried by mid summer!). As for the other maple... It is not a good sign that it held its leaves for a few months then dropped them BUT you really wont know until next spring. I would have faith and be kind to it (like water it with liquid seaweed) until then. Good luck and let us know what happens!
Liquid sewaeed? Ok, now I'm really out of my element! Regarding the sick JM. What do you think about cutting it right back?
Well, it seems we don't have too much hope for that tree in this thread. BUT if you are hopeful, I wouldn't do anything to it in terms of pruning until you see if there is any life left in the spring. As far as the seaweed thing... Giggle all you want but it works for me. :) There are several seaweed products that are fairly common (Maxicrop, Nature's Guide, Natrakelp, North Country Organics, Neptune's Harvest, etc.). Personally, I use the Maxicrop product with iron for maples, (www.maxicrop.com for more info). I know it sounds weird, but it's not really. It's not a miracle cure, but it sure seems to have brought some plants back from the edge for me!
You guys stop giggling at Katie :) Seaweed is an excellent organic fertiliser ..... Have a look here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seaweed_fertilizer
Aw shucks. [blushing, gingerly kicking at dirt] Thanks for coming to my rescue! I am glad to know there are other seaweed weirdos in here. :)
If you decide to plant another tree in the same spot, it might be best when removing the rootball to remove some of the soil around it as a precaution, in case of disease. Would think it should have put out a new set of leaves after mid July if much life there. Some more info concerning "seaweed" if you use the "search'' box in the title bar near top of page, some for maples.
May have seemed a little blunt or ruthless , but it looks like you've done the best you can for that tree and is commendable. Just hard to watch someone struggle with it, when even if it did live, it would likely just lead to further disappointment. Appears a good maple tree would be more deserving of the time and attention, and more rewarding. Just an opinion.
