As I said, some will claim you are a tree killer for planting a sugar maple in unholy clay no matter the evidence your present them, they just ignore it. Like growing by the thousands in the local heavy clay to a very large size. The the mound is only to help get them established, so they don't sit in a basically a bucket of water, while the roots then find the right level for their roots to grow in, same as if it is loam. The mound is 8-10 inches tall, and the tree trunk will end up a couple feet across and will far surpass the size of the mound. The roots will grow naturally at the proper level. They will find the same level in the soil no matter how they are planted to begin with. IF the right depth is one foot, then they will grow to one foot depth. If they start 6 inches above that, then they will grow down to one foot. They will not grow at 6 inches instead of 12 inches. If you look closely at many larger established trees, there will be evidence of them being planted on a mound, but the scale of the mound is such a small fraction in comparison to the overall size of the tree, it's not noticed unless you look for it. As far as whether it really is heavy clay or something similar to clay but not really clay. Take a look here. ftp://ftp-fc.sc.egov.usda.gov/NSSC/Soil_Taxonomy/maps.pdf for a nation wide soils map. The local soils are of the order Ultisol which are ancient heavy clays. This also includes far Northeast Oklahoma which katrina1 has said in other posts is the area of her location. For information of Ultisols look here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultisol And more specifically at my location the specific Ultisols that the thousands of large mature natural and planted sugar maples which are no evidence that sugar maples can be planted in clay and do well in real clay are "Ck-7" and "Jo-4". But alas, to some it matter not. Some soils/environments sugar maples will not survive, or at least not prosper. Some will require some special attention at the start, as transplanting is not a natural process, and is akin of having open heart surgery, therefore special care is only reasonable. Some clays may not be suitable. However to imply that your site is unsuitable simply because it is clay is ridiculous and unfounded. All the thousands I see around me must simply be a dream. What a beautiful dream it is. katrina1 do whatever you want. I was simply trying to make you aware of what has been successful for me and it a recommended method (BTW this method originated from the Minnesota extension service I think, it's been too long since looking it up). Just google "planting trees in clay soils" to find similar instructions. It works, and is recommended, and that's all the evidence I need.

I would recommend to repot the tree into a much larger pot so it doesn't dry out so fast. Being new at gardening, that's the most common way to lose a plant by letting it dry out. Personally, I would plant it in the ground. Plants in pots take a lot more time and knowledge to grow successfully. GardenGal has given you very good information. I grow about a hundred Japanese Maples in containers, and about that many more in the ground, and can vouch for what she has said. You mentioned that you have a Corkscrew Willow in the back yard and that doesn't leave room for much of any thing else. Willows do have an aggressive root system and I'd be leery of planting anything but a groundcover near or under it, but consider combinations of plants rather than lining up specimens along the fence. Here's what I did with a red leaved Japanese Maple and a rhododendron. Mike

I read in a few places on line that if not allowed to dry out a couple of weeks of cold stratification would help them germinate. Could you provide that citation? In my area, Red Maple or Acer rubrum seed will ripen next month. Some years they are shed in large quantities, not this year. When they ripen seed should first be checked for soundness. Cut a few in half and be sure they are not hollow. When you find a good tree use seed from that tree. Break off the wing and discard it. Direct seed them into pots, put several seed in each pot, you can always come back later on and remove the weakest ones. Red & Silver maples have seed which matures in May, cold stratification doesn't figure into their germination.

Did it rain much while you were gone? I just planted an acer griseum recently and have found it to be a very thirsty tree. I have noticed that with a lot of newly planted trees and shrubs, the soil around the plant may be moist but the root ball itself may be very dry. I know this because I use one of those moisture meter probes to check them often.