Bloodgood Japanese Maple - need advice..
bentleyvt
11 years ago
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Comments (12)
houstontexas123
11 years agohouzi
11 years agoRelated Discussions
Need advice re: bloodgood maple
Comments (6)BTW here are the reasons why I concluded that it's a bloodgood: 1) Most of the local nurseries here (including the box stores and the larger locals) carry bloodgoods 2) The leaves are consistent with bloodgoods -- mostly red, but will green up when it gets hot 3) I've compared the leaves to the bloodgoods at our local nurseries, and they appear identical. So I don't know for certain that it's a bloodgood, it's just my best guess based on information available. And I can post a pic after the leaves emerge....See Moregroundcover under bloodgood japanese maple tree
Comments (15)Your "landscapers" are sorely misinformed. Pretty much anything can grow under a Japanese maple, as their root system does not have the same aggressive, water-guzzling, nutrient-hogging character that other, native maples display. And a hot, dry summer will require regular periodic irrigation of any JM for it to survive and thrive - these are not drought tolerant trees. My only concern when underplanting a taller growing JM is that you select plants that will not need frequent division to maintain them, as excessive cultivation in the root zone or any significant disturbance can damage the delicate root system, sometimes to fatal results. Selecting something to contrast with the dark red foliage is a good idea, like bboy's suggestion of blue leaved hostas. You could add Japanese painted ferns as well to pick up the coloring of both the hostas and the tree foliage. I like the contrast of gold tones myself, so golden leaved hostas, Japanese forest grass (Hakonechloa 'Aureola' or 'All Gold'), Campanula 'Dickson's Gold', spotted London Pride (Saxifraga x urbium 'Aureopunctata) or Lamium 'Anne Greenaway' or 'Aureum' and autumn fern are all suitable choices. Epimediums are an excellent choice as well, as is any moisture preferring, shade tolerant groundcover or part shade perennial that doesn't require frequent division. FWIW, my JM's are planted in the middle of mixed borders with an assortment of a wide variety of part shade shrubs, perennials/grasses and groundcovers surrounding them. So the notion that "nothing" will grow under them is very misplaced....See MoreJapanese maple bloodgood
Comments (13)I'd tend to agree with both david and subtropic - not all that fussy at all. Just good drainage and sufficient irrigation during dry spells. Actually, the red leaved forms - both weeping dissectums and uprights like Bloodgood - are extremely tolerant of lots of sun (although leaf color may be impacted) and even moderate wind. OTOH, Sango Kaku and other red barked JM's tend to have increased disease issues and can be quite fussy for their genre :-) And I would only refer to some of the variegated ones as "divas".....but then I might hold a different opinion if I were in a zone 6. Due to its early leafing nature, Bloodgood does have a reputation for being damaged by late spring frosts in colder zones - Emperor I was introduced as a 'superior' alternative as it buds/leafs out somewhat later and is less likely to experience significant damage. Even so, it should be able to develop and send out a later flush of foliage in another few weeks. You may just not see it as full and as lush looking as if had escaped the cold weather but it should come around. And you might look for a bit of end twig die back as well but nothing overly serious....See Morejapanese maple bloodgood crisping up
Comments (22)LOL!! lanna, if that amount of water was fine, then you would not have a problem with the leaves crisping and dying. It doesn't matter if the tree is large or not, 5 minutes a day is NOT getting the water far enough down into the soil profile to be of sufficient benefit to the roots. Japanese maples, well established or not, are not the slightest bit drought tolerant and young trees even less so. Just try less frequent but longer watering intervals and see if things perk up. Drought stress on JM's can be quite cumulative and not show all signs immediately. Just because the cambium is still green now does not mean that tree cannot succumb from drought over time. Also, any kind of stressor on JM's - like drought - leaves the trees prone to opportunistic pathogens, like Verticillium wilt. I can't stress this enough - it really DOES make a huge difference on how one waters plants in the landscape!!...See Morehouzi
11 years agobentleyvt
11 years agohouzi
11 years agoalley_cat_gw_7b
11 years agobentleyvt
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11 years agoCEFreeman
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8 years ago
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