Thank you both for your responses and encouragement. Doing nothing right now was my gut feeling but I just wasn't sure. The tree does look healthy now, green leaves and all, and it's a beautiful shape so I'm really looking forward to seeing it in spring. We have another maple (not an Ukigumo - don't know what it is) that was here when we bought the house 15 years ago (planted in the ground) and it's always the last of our deciduous trees to lose its leaves -- maybe late November. So maybe the little tree knew what it was doing, putting out new leaves now. The temperatures here are supposed to go back up to the mid 60s and 70s this weekend...

Kristin, It is hard to suggest to someone else what to do with their seedlings because none of us live in your exact climate/weather conditions nor do we know how strong your plants are, so we're just guessing. I usually harden my plants off first for a week on a screened-in porch where the screening provides some wind and sun protection. Then they go outside for 1 hr. the first day, 2 hrs. the second, 3 hrs. the third, etc. Once they are able to stay outside from sunrise to sunset, I leave them on the screened-in porch or in the potting shed which protects them from night-roaming plant-eaters like rabbits and deer but exposes them to cooler night air. If the temps are forecast to drop below 45 degrees, they go into the well-insulated barn. If a surprise snow storm or high winds arrive, they may find themselves spending a day or two in the garage. I never leave mine outside in the yard at night because if I did, the deer would throw a wild party and invite all their friends and I wouldn't have any seedlings by the next morning. I'd say that if you feel comfortable leaving them outside at night, go ahead, but be aware that any wild things, including domestic cats and dogs, raccoons, squirrels, rabbits, etc. roaming around at night may 'visit' them, and sometimes you have surprising number of animals roaming even in suburban areas. Also, always trust your instincts about the weather and do not trust the forecast. I have had a forecast of an overnight low of 50 lull me into a false sense of security only to have plants damaged when the overnight low dropped to 32 degrees. I learned an important lesson there. If your wind is forecast to blow higher than maybe 12-15 mph all night, I wouldn't leave them out. They need a break from the wind, and it has been relentless all week and should be strong again tomorrow. Dawn

Thanks, I will keep it in the turface until I see more root growth. At this time though it is only a twig, there are no leaves yet. they all fell off when I put the cutting in the turface. I also keep it in a large plastic container with the lid closed. Makes it kinda like a little green house. I open it up every day or so for some fresh air. when I removed the cutting and saw the new roots I also saw some white growth, im guessing mold? I wiped this off and put it back into the turface and it seems to be fine.I think I may have forgot to let it breath once or twice and it got too moist! Thank you again for the great advice. I am hoping now that the roots are forming the roots will grow faster.

Vaporvac Z6-OhioRiverValley Thank you! I had no idea that fungus gnats would attack rooted cuttings and cause wilt and killing them. I have had a few rooted cutting die in the last month....leafed out, then wilt and die. I did not water with mosquito bits, but I did try 1/3 hydrogen peroxide with 2/3 water. I also just recently read that a low fan with help dry out the top of the soil and it can cut down the gnats laying eggs. Too wet of soil has been causing me problems. I also had aphids from the new growth and blew them off with compressed air outside. cheekychick510 It takes a little bit to keep the cuttings alive after rooting, but keep it up. Rose Geek youtube has a number of ideas too. But this is more helpful to ask questions here.