Photos/History: Japanese Maple (Acer Palmatum)

One of the most in-demand landscape trees, the Japanese Maple has a reputation as a temperamental, tender plant, something of a "diva". With multi-colored foliage, ranging from  brilliant green to golden yellow to reds & maroons, and distinctive 5-point Maple leaf shape, this tree does not like hot, dry conditions or too much wind. An "understory" tree, it does best with morning sun & afternoon shade. Some trees grow as tall as 30 ft. 

This photo (left) shows my 1st attempt; a sapling ordered via Internet & shipped by US mail. This tree was an Acer Bloodgood, the most colorful of the cultivars. He came through shipping in fair condition & responded well to potting & was starting build a canopy, when my own negligence left him out in direct sun for several hours, during a hot spell, late in summer/fall '24. He never recovered.

My lust for one of these signature trees was undiminished, and almost a year later, I stumbled across a deal, advertised by one of the pricier Home & Garden companies..that was Sunday night..Monday morning I drove to their location (20 mi.?) & picked-up the saddest, most bedraggled, drooping young tree you can imagine. The guy at the nursery told me I didn't have to take it..they'd refund my money, but I didn't care about how it looked..I had a Japanese Maple! I'm sorry I don't have any photos, but taking pictures of that was the last thing on my mind.. I let him rest for a couple of days..watered, fed, pruned (all the dead stuff) & he began to leaf-out. This is when I started taking photos.

The foliage continues to grow & is a vibrant green, the tree stands straighter and I've even seen some back-budding on the lower trunk..he seems more than comfortable rooted in his nursery pot..ok..I've got a viable candidate, but I made the decision not to do any major pruning (top or bottom) until winter; this cultivar (Monrovia) is deciduous & should go dormant or semi-dormant this winter ('25-26). What I have been doing is getting rid of extraneous branching & foliage to reveal the "bones" of the tree & as the photos below show, he currently is about 5 ft. tall with a single trunk, splitting about mid-point, one taller & dominant. The goal is to reduce his height about 18 -24 inches & repot (training pot?)  ..that will be the plan until further notice.

Oct. 11, 2025 - pruned the "rogue" branch that was competing with the secondary branch, taking the 1st real step towards our goal of turning this reclamation project into one of our "little trees".

Nov. 3, 2025 - tree is continuing to "fill out" & look more & more like a tree..still no sign of the fall foliage..leaves are bright green (these shots don't do it justice)..time to make some decisions about overall strategy for this specimen..whether to attempt shortening the trunk by "layering" or wait & see if he will back-bud..whatever the decision, will wait another 60 days to either prune or layer or both, when he is dormant (this cultivar is deciduous)

Nov. 19, 2025 - Over the last day or so, I noticed that the tree was looking disheveled, but figured it was due to the storm & that JM's don't like being wet & cold. Upon closer inspection, I saw that some of the leaves had discolored tips..in fact, the tips were turning a blue-black color, as you can see in this enlarged photo (left)

I began researching possible causes for this discoloration & learned that it indicates a circulatory problem, possibly root restriction or damage to the roots. Either way, this changes my plan & probably overall strategy for this tree.

Nov. 20, 2025 - Regardless of my long-standing plan to wait until winter & dormancy, it will be necessary to de-pot this plant, today if possible, & take a good, hard look at the roots & the root system for signs of rot, infestation, or constriction due to overgrown or potbound root growth. If there is rot, I will remove the affected portions or treat them if it is an infestation or some sort. Now I have no choice..I'm going to have to re-pot him as a consequence..