The Real Problem is this: The Proof On The Ground In the forests of Northern California, bark is literally being scorched from trees. On many specimens, only a thin strip of bark remains on the shaded side of the tree. Foliage is being scorched with many trees having only a fraction of their normal leaf cover. Many native species of plants are not even sprouting any more. The organisms that do still manage to grow appear miniaturized in some cases. What are just some of the results of excessive UV exposure to plants? Can stop sprouting of seeds, Stunts growth, Limb die off, Reduced foliage, DNA damage, Changes nutrient distribution, Mutatins, Effects photosynthesis Greatly increased mortality SOME known effects of excessive UV exposure to aquatic life: All aquatic life is particularly vulnerable to high UV levels. Phytoplankton accounts for some 30% of the worlds' intake of animal protein. Phytoplankton and the microorganisms they consume are killed by excessive UV levels. (Global plankton populations have already been reduced by 40% to 50%. Much of the die off is likely due to increased UV radiation.) Less plankton = less carbon-dioxide absorption. Less plankton = less oxygen production. (Atmospheric oxygen content around the globe declining rapidly) Less plankton = less fish. Period. Continue: http://globalmarchagainstchemtrailsandgeoengineering.com/ Also view the evidence videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvtD_dizuDE and this one too: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48J6F4PLOlU Contact your local news channel and newspaper. Don't contact the government, they have the canned answers anyway. Here is a link that might be useful: Global March Against Chemtrails and Geo-Engineering

Firstly, congrats on saving some seedlings from certain doom. Just to give you a quick answer (I'm sure more qualified members will follow up.) Maples do not require much fertilizer at all. The fertilizer ratio you should use is 10-10-10 or lower and diluted to half of its recommended directions. Some will tell you not to use slow release fertilizer as it is released based on temperature and may release too much fert. It is perfectly normal for maple seedlings to have different leaf shapes and colors; each seedling is the product of two different trees producing hybrid seedlings. One way to have a perfect clone of the parent tree is to graft a branch to compatible rootstock, however, it may be too late to secure a cutting.

I'll give my opinion based on growing a lot of Japanese maples from seed along with other trees. 1) You need a lot more light, either sun (they can take more than you think) or supplement with more light when growing indoors (overhead lighting for example). The seedlings are tall and leggy. 2) They are likely falling over and dying from damping off (google it for more info). I go through this every time I grow maples from seed. A couple of things you can try to limit it. First, make sure you don't over water. I had mine outside and we had record amounts of rain earlier this year so that didn't help. Second, make sure you have a well draining growing medium. Third, you can use some sort of fungicide to control disease. I usually go a more "organic" route and used Actinovate. It seems to help as I didn't lose anymore trees after applying it, though it is hardly a controlled study.

Agartta, ha ha you crack me up. I was going to say “it’s not how big it is.............. Maria Elena, No, I had no issues with growth last year. The larger plant with the seed pod in the photo above was one of our own seeds we grew through our Winter and even with the cold, those seedlings still grew well. Our growing season this year started with heatwave conditions from the get go. The tiny seedling and the 4 varieties planted at the same time, (Rinoa’s seed) grew very slow from the beginning. (All four different varieties behaved the same.) Our babies had to adapt quickly to the heat, but I believe this is what slowed them from the beginning. As for fertiliser - we don’t fertilise our babies regularly, they usually get enough nutrients from the soil mix. But, as these grew slower, we did supplement them occasionally with a little fertiliser, (one with a slightly higher nitrogen content). Fertiliser did not seem to help with growth. We do also, feed all our babies with seaweed solution (seasol) while they are small. As for whether it harms the baby flowering early, I don’t know, but I will let you know if I notice anything different with this one. I agree that it takes a lot of energy from the plant to flower, as it also does for growing seed pods. But, I am sooo curious to see if this little one can flower....so fingers crossed. :) Here’s a photo of the seed/variety this little one is from. (Rinoa’s photo)