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what to do w/ Japanese Maple growth

13 years ago

I ordered a Japanese Maple 'Robinson Red' and put it in a pot last year. It was only 3-4 inches tall. This summer I have had only one shoot grow straight up. It's grown at least 2 1/2 feet one shoot straight up. There are no other shoots growing off of it. The branch is so small it's not keeping up with the growth and is floppy in the wind. Should I cut it down some. Would that make it shoot in other spots or do I want one long stem for the main branch. Help! Tell me what to do! Thank you Thank you!

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Comment (1)

tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
13 years ago
Your tree has largely stopped spending it's current photosynthate (food/energy) on new leaves and branch extension and is storing it instead for the dormant period and to push a new flush of growth in the spring. I wouldn't remove any significant volume of foliage now for that reason. Soon, leaves will fall & you can prune it back a little with almost no sacrifice of stored energy. If you do, next spring, you'll have a significant number of lateral breaks.

Al
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