Hi everyone! Brand new to the forum! I'm located in northern California, in the San Francisco Bay area. I purchased a shindeshojo from a reputable nursery here in the east Bay. It was dormant at the time. Maybe about a month before the buds swelled and began to open...I noticed a large wound at the bottom of the tree trunk! It appeared that something chewed away at it...and the wound was leaking for about 3 to 4 days before it dried up. When the leaves began to open they were a lime green with a slight touch of red to the tips and it just slipped further into a deep lime green. So my question is do any of you think I just got a mislabeled tree or might that wound have affected the trajectory of it's spring color? It's a younger specimen...and I also wonder if the almost non existent winter we had this year might also affect it's coloring? It received morning and afternoon sun so I don't think it's an issue of not receiving enough light. Thanks for your time!
No amount of common or even strange events will change shin deshojo from emerging with its characteristic coral red color. Hence the tree was not correctly tagged. Japanese maples develop stem pressure in spring as well as fall. The dripping from the wound was almost certainly just this pressure being relieved = normal. But, the fact that it 'leaked' is testimony that the damage was 'fresh'. IOW, this is evidence that a tool/critter cut into the wood (xylem) shortly before you observed it and that it wasn't there when you brought it home from the nursery. In time, the tree will grow new bark over the wound (assuming normal vitality). If you are a trusted customer, the nursery may take it back in exchange for a real shin deshojo. Otherwise, I would guess they would exercise the 'you broke it, you own it' policy. Regardless, the nursery ought to be able to tell you the variety you got instead of the shin deshojo it was supposed to be.
Can I third that, so very often I'm afraid garden centres and even nurseries employ temp untrained staff , who by no fault of their own see plants with no labels and place anything they see near in the pot. It happens everywhere unfortunately.
Thank you so very much! I appreciate you guys taking time out to respond. I had a feeling it was just mislabeled...I eagerly awaited those bright red leaves all winter! While it was disappointing, the tree is still a beautiful green variety with a lovely vase shape thus far. I'll keep her :)
