Doreen, I'll email you. See if I have any flower seeds on my list that interest you. I also have Pink Cleome, Purple coneflower, red Columbine, Shasta Daisy seeds available. Regards, Dave

In my climate zone Bloodgood JMs need afternoon shade, They do better being planted on the East side of house or of shade trees or on the North side with at least dappled shade coming from the West. It seems though that once the tree has become exceptionally well established it acclimates pretty well to some afternoon sun without showing much stress. Your tree obviously is not established yet and would be more sensitive to such issues. Plus the amendments to your soil that you mentioned quite possibly are contributing to tree's stress. Normally though, I would imagine that if the leaves are going white, that would indicate that those particular leaves are getting more sun than they have previously been acclimated to handle.

Any time you have seedlings, they can be variable. That is how new cultivars are discovered - you might get some ordinary ones, but sometimes something really good happens. Once a special plant is identified, it is propagated by cuttings to ensure that the trait is maintained, then it is tested to make sure it is garden worthy, then it is patented and named. That is how you get things like Acer palmatum 'Bloodgood' - out of a bunch of random Acer palmatum seedlings, it was selected. But the bottom line is that yes you can transplant your seedlings and keep them or give them away. They will do fine.

Ninajc, trust your tree! At that size it is established enough to care for itself and sounds like it was doing that quite nicely. The conditions each year are different, which probably accounts for what it does and when, as it acclimates to the weather. If you DO do something soon you may lose it. Why do you feel it needs to be pruned? To me, the graceful shape they develop on their own is beautiful. I thought that was part of the charm of Japanese Maples. My SIL, on the other hand, liked ours so much she planted one in a little garden area right next to the house and keeps it pruned so she can see out the window. The trunk is growing but the top is a perfectly round little meatball shape! I cringe every time I see it. What a waste of a beautiful tree. Sandy