Japanese Maple Rebuild or Improvement?

[eplov90]

During winter I picked up a new Japanese maple grown locally for 15+ years by someone that was moving on most of their collection.


The things that immediately stood out were the nice spreading nebari and movement in the lower trunk which I think give this tree a ton of potential. It clearly also has some issues with leggy branches and more importantly, a lack of taper/interest in the top 2/3 of the trunk.

The previous owner told me it was in need of a repot so that was the first action on the agenda and I did end up finding a pretty bad root system due to the heavily broken-down soil.

It's been repotted in fresh mix and given the poor condition of the roots, I figured I should let it grow wild this year before doing any drastic work. This spring it has thrown out a ton of new growth so I thinned out the foliage towards the top to let some light and air reach into all areas of three.

I see two possible paths here for long-term development and I'd like some help choosing one:

• Option 1 - Rebuild it as a much shorter tree, probably about half of the current height. In this scenario, I'd need to graft a new leader and then pretty much every branch would have to be rebuilt from scratch as well.
• Option 2 - Keep it the same heigh but regrow the final third to add more interest and taper, and maybe let a sacrifice grow in the middle third to try to improve taper transition. In this case, maybe a few branches could be retained, although they would still need to be chased back.

Which path would you take? And am I missing other options?

 

[BobbyLane]

My new leader

I wouldnt chop the other branches off, just would cut them back and train them upwards. Get new leader moving upwards and maybe play around with planting angles to flow with my new leader. I dont see the need to graft a new leader but people just like to graft things.

 

[eplov90]

Thanks @BobbyLane that's a good option I hadn't fully considered. I had focused on a different front and may I am overthinking it but it feels like the section leading into the new leader is too straight and is also too long compared to each trunk section below -- the red lines below show what I imagined the proportional height should be there. Maybe if a branch was added on the left where that top red section ends it would add some movement over time?

 

[eplov90]

Also, while looking at the tree I noticed most crevices seem to have been filled with these eggs(?). Any idea what they might be?

 

[KiwiPlantGuy]

Hi @eplov90 ,
I really like your tree and I see a great future. I want to present you with another option of a more feminine tree. You will see in my crude adjustments to your photo are to -
1. Red lines to cut off and start new apex
2. Black lines are thread grafts to add more branches as I feel this will take away a bit of the straight no taper thing.
3. Yellow lines are to shorten the main branches to start them again but much closer.

Hope this helps in some way,
Charles

Edit, no idea what the eggs are but don’t look very nice!

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

Maybe a combination of the two approaches…if you’re wanting to reduce the height, I like the cut @BobbyLane suggested. Additionally, thread-grafting is a great way to rejuvenate a tree like this one. Branches are easily placed exactly where you want them and look pretty good in just a few growing seasons; not only on the trunk, but also on mature branches that have gotten leggy.

 

[BobbyLane]

Thanks @BobbyLane that's a good option I hadn't fully considered. I had focused on a different front and may I am overthinking it but it feels like the section leading into the new leader is too straight and is also too long compared to each trunk section below -- the red lines below show what I imagined the proportional height should be there. Maybe if a branch was added on the left where that top red section ends it would add some movement over time?

View attachment 487745

I would make the cut in such a way that it takes a little of the straight edge off and making the cut concave after the cut either with a carving tool or large knob cutters will give the edge some movement.

Is that a node directly under white marker paint on my virtual? id leave it intact. looks like it could pop there.

The eggs could be slug eggs
pick them out.

I still wouldnt cut off all the branches tho, you have a nice thick trunk with some thick mature branches that fit the trunk but just need cutting back to nodes closer to the trunk, you want to try n preserve some of the branch movement already there too when making these cut backs. these low branches will help to maintain a powerful look.

 

[bwaynef]

That base of this tree was too good not to see what it would look like mostly rebuilt. It'd probably be tough deciding to cut back this far, but I think it warrants consideration.

I also like BobbyLane's chop site, but I think the resulting leader would need to be chopped to keep from letting the design get leggy again.

This looks like a fun piece. You've got a time to study it while it recuperates before you have to decide.

 

[eplov90]

This all really helpful @BobbyLane, @bwaynef @Brian Van Fleet. I think my takeaway is a bit of hybrid of everyone's input:


That way I can keep part of the existing branch as the new leader and some of the existing branches.

The lower branches will obviously need to be cut back to add more taper in the new, shorter silhouette. Years of work on this tree lie ahead but I am excited to see it develop.

Thanks for all the input.

 

[eplov90]

Hi @eplov90 ,
I really like your tree and I see a great future. I want to present you with another option of a more feminine tree. You will see in my crude adjustments to your photo are to -
1. Red lines to cut off and start new apex
2. Black lines are thread grafts to add more branches as I feel this will take away a bit of the straight no taper thing.
3. Yellow lines are to shorten the main branches to start them again but much closer.
View attachment 487815
Hope this helps in some way,
Charles

Edit, no idea what the eggs are but don’t look very nice!

I appreciate the suggestion @KiwiPlantGuy - I was considering that option too but there is some swelling at the cluster of branches 2/3 of the way up, causing reverse taper, so in my mind that section will have to go regardless of the design I choose. I might try to air layer there and get a small mame maple though, since the ramification at the top isn't bad.

GT

 

[eplov90]

I’ll post pictures after leaf drop but as a quick update on this tree, I ended up layering off the top. It was slow to put out roots but seems to be doing well after separation.

I’ve also spent some time considering what to do with it based on the suggestions. I have found I can take pics of the trees to my note taking tablet, trace them and chop and change the image from there. I came up with two options - one based on @BobbyLane’s design and another smaller, compact one.

This will get updated again before I do anything in the spring but thought I would share the design process in case anyone is following. Currently, I’m leaning towards the shorter one.

The lines with the height are the section of the tree that already exists today.

 

[eplov90]

Quick summer update on this tree. As I mentioned, I air-layered the top off and that is looking like it will be a funky little shohin after leafdrop-- I'll make a separate thread for that in the future.

The base of the tree has grown well and thrown up a few options for the new leader. I also pulled up the top remaining lateral branch and I think I will thread graft up from near the base of that in the spring to create the new leader as the best bud that popped on the trunk is on the future back of the tree. Here is where it is now with a virt of what I am thinking.



Once I get the trunk line back on track, I'll start thinking more seriously about what to do with some of the old, spindly branches. In the meantime have done a thread graft on one as @Brian Van Fleet suggested to see how it does but no major decisions yet. I will also move into a bigger pot next year to get more growth for the new leader.