At the risk of beating a dead horse, I'm posting one more pic. Only because I see additional crack forming in the bark. I wonder if its because the tree is exposed to morning sun as well as afternoon sun? Is it possible the trunk being directly exposed to sun in the morning (as opposed to afternoon when its shaded by leaves) is causing this to happen? I can see atlease two additional splits forming in bark and they are all on the side of trunk facing morning sun. That being said, I just realized I haven't really looked at the other side of the tree............. Uploaded with ImageShack.us

The real question is...will this tree make it? I've fenced it off, just to be sure... To date--no leaf drop. In fact, it has unfurled some new leaves. I've uploaded additional pics of the damage... I took them as I walked around my little tree: 1) conifers--Here are two pics of the bark peelings...I'm afraid they've dried and curled. I'd hate to think someone took a vegetable peeler to my tree... Would a vegetable peeler have loosened the bark at the edges of where it has popped off? Because it appears to be loose there in a couple of spots... ANYHOO...what's done is done. I think I'm going to "wait and see." And hope for the best. I'm choosing to believe that the fact that my tree is still putting out new growth is a positive sign. Brought home a wee (though pricey!)'Beni Hime' today...he's going to live in a pot on one of my stone walls. Oh, it's a dangerous thing to work in a GC. Sometimes I think they should just pay me in plants... Pics tomorrow. (In a different post!) 'Tamukeyama' will probably follow me home after my next paycheck! melanie

I saw an Inazuma maple today at a nursery. It was about 5 ft tall and wide. I liked the shape of the leaves and their coloration. The only thing I didn't like was that it looked very much like a shrub and not so much like a JM tree, if that makes sense... Do you know if it will assume the shape of a small tree with age, or if it can be carefully pruned to resemble more of a small tree shape? The other one I saw and really liked was Acer shirasawanum 'Yasemin'. It was a small plant still, but the color was almost identical to the Bloodgood's and Emperor I's nearby, except that the leave shape was very appealing and different from the more typical Acer palmatum shape. Bboy, the Wolff maple looks great, the leave shape seems distinctly different from Bloodgood, color seems good. I will check it out at the local nurseries. Whaas, I saw a Fireglow nearby as well, but I couldn't tell any difference between them in the Bloodgood's, neither in foliage shape nor coloration. Like I said, I have nothing against Bloodgood, it's a great tree, and obviously is doing well in our area, or all the older trees wouldn't be around. I just think there are so many good maple varieties that it doesn't hurt to plant something different occasionally. Thanks for all your suggestions and ideas.

Tom, Thanks for mentioning this. Winter protection from cold winter winds is definitely a must for most but especially us. We discussed this issue above in a few posts, but my backyard where most of my garden (and Japanese Maples)is located is protected on all sides. Two sides, north and east, by a wood fence that borders my yard and two neighbors, and the western side by my house. The southern side has a chain link fence partially protected by bamboo fencing, beyond which is a large neighboring yard. Even the side that is more exposed has houses beyond the yard breaking up wind from that direction. My front yard facing north gets most wind between my house and a neighbor's, but the north winds get partially blocked by the neighbor's house. Here, I have a few Maples, two of which are most exposed to wind--one an AP 'palmatum' (parent cultivar) has done fine for two years. The other a Acer Shirasawanum 'Palmatifolium' I put in this year. I will probably put wire around this and burlap or other protection as suggested. Other palmatums: A Red Dragon, Hogyoku and Bloodgood have done fine for two years and a Kandy Kitchen over the winter. These are in a bed that get some north winds exposure in the front. Back to my backyard though I have a micro-climate created by the enclosure of the fences. I plan to extend and improve my bamboo fencing. And in fact, when I go to the best Japanese gardens typically they have all the most delicate and finer plants located in an enclosure of some sort here (at Botanic Gardens). Actually making a garden enclosure is not just for protection but looks nicer as well. I also have two Norway Spruces anchoring the corner of my backyard garden which provide a windbreak. I also have other conifers (Pines) in the garden which provide some protection from wind too. A larger Norway Maple away from the main area provides some afternoon shade for summer heat, but I have had to prune this to allow more sunlight to get through. My pleasant surprise is that these cultivars are much hardier than they have been given credit for, but we here in northern Illinois have not seen drastic winter temps. I haven't seen temps in the -25 degree range for over fifteen years. Since I've been collecting (very short time) the winters have reached -15, but this is only for one or two days. Long term cold fronts typically are in the zero degree, plus or minus 5 degrees range. Wind chill can be much colder. But it is the temperature below ground that is key. In fact, snow as tough as it is to deal with in some ways actually protects the roots from the cold and wind. It is a natural insulator. The real killer is actually late frosts after a warming trend as many here on the forum can attest to--the killer Spring frost of 2007 that drastically affected the Southern states and southern Illinois though not here because the warming trend here was brief enough that it did not cause the trees to leaf. These type of events can quickly take the life of our trees as I found out this year with a small Bloodgood. Late frost can happen in any zone, but affect areas that are more prone to drastic temperature swings in the Spring. More later, Ken