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question on autumn blaze maple

15 years ago

I planted two autumn blaze maples at my summerhouse in Michigan in April of 2007. Both had their central leaders cut when I bought it, and from that the three top buds grew into three new central leaders. Does this slow the trees growth rate? This spring the tree leafed out fine, however it only grew about 8 to 10 inches; far less than the 3 to 5 feet that I've read that these trees can grow in a year.

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Comments (4)

stompede
15 years ago
I would prune out 2 of those leaders and stick with one. The tree will be stronger this way. I wouldn't think too much about the growth rate until next year, just to be sure it is established.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
15 years ago
you will know.. when it re-establishes its root mass ... when you achieve the expected growth rate ....

you dont mention how big they were at planting ... nor whether ball and burlap or potted ...

a large tree raped from the ground by ball and burlapping.. can take 2 to 5 years to regrow the appropriate root mass ... to start growing like it is supposed to ...

a small potted tree .. can begin to increase its growth rate much faster... since you didnt cut off all its roots to BB it ... but it will still take a year or two ...

more leaves.. means more food production .. means more root growth .. means faster re-establishment ... ergo .. i would leave as many leaves on the plant as possible ....for now..

there never is really any hurry on pruning a tree ... you can remove one of the leaders after leaf fall ... and a second next fall ....

the only failure in the scenario is your expectation that it would grow like a weed immediately ... relax.. time will soon come.. when you are complaining about the maple.. lol

good luck

ken
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stompede
15 years ago
Like ken said, give it time. Autumn Blaze will grow incredibly fast. In fact, it grows so fast sometimes it grows out of a saleable size by many tree farms.
wisconsitom
15 years ago
Very annoying the way nurseries top their whips. I know the reasons for which this is done.....to make it "bush out"..yadda yadda. All it does is ruin the naturally correct growth form of the tree.

In cases of codominant leaders such as this, I usually recommend 'subordination pruning'. Instead of complete removal of the codominants, you shorten them up to a preferably outward facing branchlet. This slows down their growth, allowing the remaining one you don't cut to assume its leadership role. There are a number of reasons why this is better than complete removal. Hit me back if you want more 'splainin.

+oM

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