A thorough pruning involves removing dead limbs and crossing branches (or branches that will cross in the future). I recommend pruning maples between mid-July and August, a period when sap won’t run from cuts. Note: We have updated to a new POS system. Keep in mind that when pruning a Japanese maple to prune with restraint. dissectum is a small ornamental tree with a dissected-leaf. "Redirect" can also mean nipping back long, leggy shoots to force more side branching or fruiting spurs. Firstly, you have to prune off the lower limbs which choke the lower shrubs or cause obstacles to walkways. Japanese Lace leaf Maple Pruning . Exactly what you prune out of your Japanese maple will depend upon the variety of tree you have. Observe how, even after cleaning out and thinning, there may still be variations in branch density around the tree. We might peek inside and see an impenetrable tangle of branches. You can remove larger branches as the their need to be thinned becomes more obvious, and as you feel more confident. If it hasn't been pruned for several years, it can be a dramatic improvement. We know we don’t prune it the same way we would a fruit tree or hedge. Japanese laceleaf maples: The trunk of the laceleaf maple grows upward, and then hangs down. Or more horizontal instead of downward. Minimize any dead-end stubs. The trick to pruning this type of Japanese maple is to allow its top layer to form a sort of canopy over the We've improved health and transparency (visibility of the branching structure) with the clean out and thinning. . Click the link in this email to finalize your subscription. I have had frequent questions on pruning techniques and optimal pruning times of year for the Japanese Laceleaf Maple, and thought I would briefly list some info that could be helpful. Many of the principles also apply to other trees and shrubs. Pruning Japanese Maples to control height is a fight you won’t win. Pruning Japanese Maples: Japanese laceleaf maple pruning is also called “shell pruning”. Fall and winter are a common time to prune and shape most deciduous trees and shrubs, but not the Japanese Laceleaf! Thank you so much for the information on pruning Japanese Maples. The Acer palmatum var. This is its natural dormant period and less injury is caused by Japanese maple trimming during this time. The clean-out step can be a messy, uncomfortable job, but well worth it. Swansons Nursery is a Part of Seattle's History - and its Future, Swansons Nursery, 9701 15th Ave NW, Seattle, WA, 98117, United States. If so, and you feel it's thin enough for that zone, move on to another zone and start removing small branches there to achieve about the same density. Answer: the next most dense zone you find, and so on. Japanese maple from becoming larger. Before cutting a branch, see where it goes. They can be grown in the garden, in containers and of course they are ideal su… In a shaded setting, is it determined to grow one direction to reach more light? The top layer of leaves forms a crown, covering the other branches and leaves. We recommend making a reservation to visit us. as the owners had the same no vision of the future attitudes. The branches or bones of maple … Japanese maples can handle anything from a light trim to more extensive pruning, depending on the time of year and the tree's health. Has it barely grown three inches from where you cut last year, or launched 3-foot-long whips? Shaping is largely about identifying masses or layers or branches and foliage, and thinning some more to open up space between them. Get your gloved hands (or your whole body, if it's a big enough tree) into the middle of all that dense stuff, and snap (if very small) or cut off any dead material you can reach. Now we might wish to reveal the tree's beauty even more. Open up views of attractive/unique branching inside and perhaps views through the tree. Late winter or early spring is when to prune a Japanese maple. Without the leaves in the way, you're able to see the shape of the tree itself and guide it to create the look you want. It will only encourage faster growth and thinner, weaker branches. dissectum). "Redirect growth energy" can mean cutting one of two branches so the growth tends to go left instead of right. I constantly (if subconsciously) ask myself three questions when pruning: Determining what the tree wants is a combination of research and observation. If heavy sap flow occurs, pruning should be delayed until it stops or wait until midsummer. Never over-prune. Sign up now and receive $5 off your next purchase! Spring is the perfect time to prune Japanese maple trees, before the buds start to break into leaves. A couple of notes: 1) The principles for thinning Japanese maples also work for a host of other broadleaf ornamental trees and shrubs, especially those with attractive branching. Balance the branch density around the tree. A Japanese maple will grow the size container it is put in. Try to anticipate the direction of future growth. Use the same care and precision that you would on healthy branches. With attention given to their location in the garden and some minimal care, they will thrive and increase in beauty every year. These are heading cuts, sometimes overused to control the size of a plant. Does your tree seem to “breathe” easier? But avoid cutting into the base collar of a branch. ", Japanese maples are naturally beautiful but can grow so dense as to obscure their elegant or exotic branching structure. Fortunately, it’s really not that difficult to prune Japanese laceleaf maples, as long as you follow some general guidelines. If heavy sap flow occurs, pruning should be delayed until it stops or wait until midsummer. Of course, the size and age of your tree, and the type you have determines how you should prune them. Pruning a Japanese maple tree is not necessarily difficult, but may be intimidating at first — particularly for a weeping or “laceleaf” cultivar (Acer palmatum Var. [All images by Swansons Nursery and/or Dan Gilchrist.]. For the most part, pruning Japanese maples is confined to removing dead wood and fine stems, which obstruct the handsome skeleton of the tree. Make Sure the Tree Is Balanced. Interior branches get shaded out and die off — not necessarily an unhealthy situation but they add to the clutter. Can you start to see through much more than when you started? If removing the branch will spoil the shape of the tree do not remove it. To avoid causing stress or stimulating unsightly growth, never remove more than one-fifth of a Japanese maple’s crown; you should also not prune a branch that is more than half the diameter of the parent stem. When Japanese maples are small, it is absolutely essential that they be pruned for shape and character. Improve its health and/or productivity (of flowers or fruit), primarily through allowing greater circulation of air and sunlight. These trees have a reputation for being hard to grow, but this is largely undeserved. Heavy sap flow can lead to disease invasion and weakening of the tree. Thank you for helping us update our new system by including your phone number. Clean Out: Remove branches which are dead, broken, crossing (within reason — some crossing may be unavoidable). Removing too much top affects the production of food energy (carbohydrates) and can result in poor root development. But it’s always better to prune less than you think you need to. The decisions about which branch to cut are more intentional than the random cutting in the earlier steps, but the technique is the same — removing one branch at a time at its base and observing how much it thins the density there. We might perceive it as fragile and delicate, and we’re afraid to mess up its natural beauty through improper pruning. Does it seem to want to sprout from bare branches and grow more dense, or shed all its interior branches and stretch out into more of a leggy look? One way to start is by lightly heading back any long branches on the tree’s perimeter which might crowd neighboring plants and structures or touch the ground (especially in the case of weepers). 2. Redirect growth energy toward where we want it to grow. For the interior, ask yourself: where’s the biggest, most dense section to declutter? On a large upright tree, it might be 1/2" diameter or smaller, but size is relative, of course. If left to grow, this shoot will take over and out-compete the main tree. Pruning the upright Japanese maple involves four main steps. Shape or layer: Create “clouds” & spaces between them. Most maples look best with periodic thinning to open up their centers, make them more translucent, and reveal their structure. I would like to learn how to prune them well. Step back between every cut you make to consider the effect it has had and to determine which branch or stem could be cut next to improve the shape. The width of these trees, on the other hand, can be somewhat modified. Barn & Field Café is open 9am-2pm daily for to-go coffee, phone orders, and take-away orders. Your upright is usually larger and more “tree” like. Whenever you’re pruning Japanese maple trees, it’s important to … As for what you want, is that branch headed in a good direction, or right for the house or a neighboring shrub? Why must we prune at all??? The weeping Japanese Maple is a beautiful tree with its low arching branches reaching to the … People ask about trimming or pruning Japanese maples fairly often and the short answer is yes, you should prune your Japanese maples. Clean out and thin this zone to make it less dense (details below), then... "Where shall I cut next?" 2. It will look like a shell , hence the name shell pruning. Lynn prefers to prune Japanese maples in late summer, but beginners will find it easier to prune when trees are leafless and dormant in late fall to midwinter. To prune the upright Japanese Maple tree, you need to follow 4 major steps. Every tree has a geometric shape and a direction or pattern in which the branches flow. Some might be small enough to snap off by hand. 2) If you are new to this, especially for very dense trees, you might first try thinning it in winter (late Nov. - Feb in our region) when you can more easily see the branching structure. Apply fish fertilizer or an organic slow-release granulated 10-10-10 fertilizer once in the early … And are you okay with the tree reaching its typical mature size? On a small weeper, this might be anything under 1/8" in diameter. dissectum).We might perceive it as fragile and delicate, and we’re afraid to mess up its natural beauty through improper pruning. A small container will dwarf the size of the tree from the size the tree would naturally be in the landscape. When you sign up for Swansons’ e-Garden Club you’ll receive members-only perks, such as invitations to special events, early notification of sales and promotions, helpful gardening tips, information about workshops, and exclusive discounts. You can always prune … Tips for Pruning Your Japanese Laceleaf Maple Tree. I hear some people say that they don’t like weeping Japanese maples (Acer palmatum ‘Dissectum’ and other cultivars) and my heart breaks. Pruning the maple several times a year is a great way to keep the maple in good health and looking elegant. We explain and show the steps to properly prune a laceleaf Japanese maple in summer. These are all thinning cuts. Pruning is an ongoing process. When pruning a lace leaf, the shape should form a canopy while when pruning an upright leaf, the shape you come out in a fan-style. If you do nothing beyond this step, your tree will still look much better. Work from the inside out, bottom to top, small branches before larger. How to prune a weeping maple. Heavy sap flow can lead to … Preserve foliage masses at the ends of major branches. I like to say that we prune a plant to encourage it in a healthy direction and help it physically and visually “breathe.” Along with “encourage,” I tend to describe pruning with such terms as "nudge" or "persuade," rather than "force" or "control. Swansons is open 9am-6pm DailyEarly Closure at 3pm on Dec. 24Closed on Christmas Day, New Year’s Day & January 4th. Cut a few branches randomly out of this dense zone, then notice what difference it makes in the density. Learn more about the general pruning principles described here by reading these pruning posts: Pruning 101,Spring Pruning: What Should I Do?, and Spring Pruning Part 2: Thinning. You might not get them all; the goal is to minimize. Pruning a Japanese maple tree is not necessarily difficult, but may be intimidating at first — particularly for a weeping or “laceleaf” cultivar (Acer palmatum Var. Top layers will act as a protective cover of foliage for the entire tree. 1. If not, keep going. There’s one more step. . We prune our trees at the appropriate times of the year and pay attention to the response of each. Start removing small branches at their base (where they branch off from a larger branch). I recommend a light pruning once in late spring and hard pruning in mid to late winter. Compared with many other trees and shrubs they have few pests or diseases and are versatile enough to thrive in locations ranging from full shade to full sun. After any of these steps, you might decide to stop and enjoy the progress you’ve made on your tree. … 1. Don't remove every last tiny branch inside the tree — the goal is to improve the transparency, not hollow it out completely. Sometimes they need a few heading cuts if there are long, outer branches. These are easier to keep smaller and pruning twice a year will help maintain their size. Or removing certain branches growing through the middle of the plant to encourage a more open habit. Enhance, or merely reveal its natural beauty. When maples are pruned in late winter or early spring the wounds can be more damaging. You can alter the tree’s natural habits to a small degree, but if you try to keep it significantly smaller (more than 10 to 20%) or different in habit from what it is genetically “programmed” to do, you might create a misshapen, wild-sprouting beast. 3. . Thank you for all your great gardening advice in your weekly newsletter. START BY TRIMMING THE LOWEST BRANCHES When attempting to prune a Japanese Maple Trees, experts advice that pruning should be carried out based on the location of the tree. If it tends to grow either denser or more open, is that acceptable? This is a time lapse video of a recent Japanese Lace Leaf Maple I had the pleasure of pruning. For stiff, twisty branches on a weeper, some crossing branches may be essential to the character of the tree, and not likely to move and rub against each other, so it’s not as necessary to remove them all. 3. You will notice different details each time. Back inside the tree canopy (if you can) look for that most dense zone and find the smallest branches there. a few yrs back, Macon means aka Maple. It might look like a hopeless tangle at first, but have faith — Rome wasn’t pruned in a day, but one cut at a time. You will receive a confirmation email soon. This post contains affiliate links. Pruning a Japanese Maple Tree Start by pruning back branches that point to the inside of the tree, grow straight up or currently rub against other branches. The graceful flow of the trunk, delicate leaves flickering in the wind, translucent in light, the beautiful colors. Walk-ins welcome as space allows. Please help us merge our records and serve you better by giving us your phone number. When maples are pruned in late winter or early spring the wounds can be more damaging. Also, we generally eliminate crossing branches — removing one of any two which cross each other to the point of touching. Thin: Open up light and air circulation. There are unfortunate examples out there of Japanese maples which have been sheared or pruned way too aggressively. I used to have a tree trimming and landscaping service in Sacramento CA., yrs, ago, we were selective about which trees to close nub. Our promise: we will NOT sell or use this number to make unsolicited calls! If you know the actual species and cultivar, you can know what mature size and growth habit it usually attains. You can choose to open up those thinner areas a bit more, creating some separation between the denser zones — gaps between the "clouds.". After planting, prune out broken branches and those with weak or narrow crotches. July 16, 2013. Or shearing the face of a hedge to force more dense internal growth. If you need to snip or saw off larger dead branches, do so, but remember they can be quite brittle. Do the same for any branches which are broken or showing wilted leaves. Do you see quite a difference? The first is that although it’s … What’s needed to help the tree breathe? Hours & DirectionsThe Holidays at SwansonsOutdoor Plants & PotteryGarden EssentialsIndoor PlantsIndoor PotteryGifts & Home DecorGift CardsSales & Events, Monthly Gardening TipsGarden BlogPlant Care LibraryGardening 101 Edible GardeningContainer GardeningFlower GardeningIndoor Plant Care, Plant GuaranteeCustomer RewardsDelivery Services, Charitable Giving GuidelinesCommercial DiscountsFull Sitemap, © Swansons Nursery 2020 - Privacy Policy. You may realize that instead of cutting three small branches, you could get the same result by tracing back to the origin of those branches and cutting one larger branch. In addition, don’t remove more than a … You can do more "fine tuning" in summer. Or, do you want to open up a dense tree (usually a good idea), or make an open tree a bit less leggy? Our promise: we will never sell your number or use it to make unsolicited calls! I lightened the tree and started to add definition and layers. Spring Pruning – Laceleaf Japanese Maple – Livonia, MI Ornamental Pruning. Japanese Maples are such beautiful trees. It’s amazing how much you can change and improve the shape of a plant just by pruning it. Laceleaf Maple pruning is often referred to as “shell pruning” because the top branches of the pruned maple look like shells. Thank you for your help! These tendencies should all be considered for what to redirect through pruning. With young trees, leave some of the lower limbs and sprouts even though they will be removed later. Secondly, you need to prune off the deadwood. The trees should not be pruned during early spring when buds are breaking, during leaf expansion, or in late autumn because the wounds won’t have enough time to heal before winter conditions of freezing or dampness. The deadwood, which is usually white, caught my eye. Next, prune off dead wood — that is, any dead twigs or brittle branches that no longer grow foliage. Then you’ve successfully pruned it, and now you have an idea of what to do in the future to keep it healthy and looking spectacular! This prevents damage from them rubbing wounds into each others’ bark. Now here are my specific tips for pruning a laceleaf Japanese maple: When I approach a laceleaf maple (or any tree or shrub that I’m about to prune), I first walk around the tree to study its branches, silhouette and overall shape and structure. Laceleaf or dissectum type varieties generally grow to about 6-8 feet tall and wide. Japanese maples are among the most rewarding trees to prune because of their shape and the wide vocabulary of their branching structure—from the strongest limb to the most delicate twig. Weeping Japanese maples tend to become little more than bushes -- weeping to the ground and so dense that their branching and trunk can't be seen. Dwarf Japanese maples are often used in containers because they get fairly close to full-size in most containers. The first step in pruning to restrict the size of the green laceleaf Japanese maple shown below, yet keep it tree like, is to remove some excess branches. While walking a property in Livonia, I noticed this Laceleaf in the front landscape. Reed Pugh. Always do less than you think you need to. Young trees may need such heading or a little redirecting of awkward branches, but go easy — there will be plenty of future opportunities to guide them as they grow. It’s an easy task to “warm up” and get to know the tree a bit before wading into the interior for the main event. Crimson Queen is a threadleaf variety of Japanese maple, Acer palmatum dissectum, that grows naturally as a shrub but more often is shaped into a tree by removing the lower limbs. An over-pruned tree can recover, but it might take a few years to look right again. The risks of controlling size are discussed below. Where to even start? These limbs provide the closest source of food energy for root development. The first is to prune off lower limbs that crowd other low-growing shrubs or possibly impede a walkway. Many maples are grafted onto an understock that in most cases will be more vigorous than the grafted scion. But you might still have a lot of dense stuff that is living tissue, so we move on to Step 2. Let’s break them into two categories, upright or dissected and weeping. You can see through the thinner areas easier. Give newly planted trees and shrubs only minimal pruning. Japanese maples are low-maintenance trees with beautiful red foliage. Actually, these maples can get quite large and need a great deal of room. You can always come back and do a little more after you’ve observed other pruning needs, or after you’ve gained more confidence. I has the most beautiful little 4 ft. Japanese maple in Macon Mo. These include dead or brittle branches that no longer produce foliage. If you can't get that information, you can still get clues about what it wants to do by observing its habit over recent history. If the tree hasn't been thinned in a while, its interior will almost certainly include dead branches, branch stubs and leaves which have been shaded out. Work around the plant at least twice (if possible). As a maple tree, the Japanese Laceleaf will bleed or ooze sap. The upper limbs are drooping and the tree's feathery, bright red leaves turn deep burgundy or … As a maple tree, the Japanese Laceleaf will bleed or ooze sap. Do not prune off more than ⅕ of the foliage or the crown of your Japanese Maple. Okay, I made that up just to see if you’re still reading. Maples should be given a thorough pruning every three years and minor “touch up” pruning annually. I have also found that trees will form a stronger trunk if the lower branches are not trimmed for a few years. Deciding which branch to remove can be random early in the thinning process, more intentional toward the latter stages. Acer palmatum dissectum is a weeping variety of Japanese maple. They are commonly referred to as “Laceleaf” Japanese maples. The weeping forms, especially in full sun, can grow into opaque, amorphous mounds, inviting such unflattering nicknames as “mushroom” or “Cousin It.”. It is commonly known as weeping Japanese maple tree or laceleaf Japanese maple.Occasionally it is also referenced as cutleaf Japanese maple or threadleaf Japanese maple.It is native to Japan, Korea and China. Thank you for signing up! Remove any shoots growing from the base of the plant whose leaves look different from the rest of the plant. Step back and take your time. A certain number of branch tips will have died back and these tips can be snapped off with your fingers, or larger branches can be cut with a pruning tool. 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