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jsimran

when to plant

jsimran
16 years ago

Is it ok to plant a JM in the middle of November in zone 6?

Also, will they do ok in a western exposure with afternoon sun?

Comments (4)

  • gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
    16 years ago

    The short answer? No and no :-)) Well, a reserved "maybe" for the first, although you are most likely pushing the bar. Generally, the middle of November in a zone 6 is a bit late to attempt to plant and establish a J. maple before winter cold sets in but if your weather is still quite mild, you have selected a somewhat protected location, the soil conditions are right and you mulch well, you can probably still pull it off. But it's still betting a lot that your weather will continue to cooperate for at least a few more weeks after planting so the roots get a chance to settle and elongate before the soil becomes too cold. That's putting you in the middle of December......

    And a western exposure in afternoon sun is asking a lot of any Japanese maple. Eastern (morning sun/afternoon shade) or any filtered shade postion out of the hot afternoon sun is preferrable. You'll get better coloring on a red leafed form if not exposed to intense afternoon sunlight plus you will have less chance of leaf scorch in summer.

  • Grancru
    16 years ago

    Plant the tree in the ground right in the pot it came in (if not a ball) in a shletered area and leave it there until early spring just before the tree breaks dormancy to move to the trees intended resting place. Morning sun/afternoon shade is by far the best but knowing what cultivar you have can give you some varience.

  • Embothrium
    16 years ago

    Key phrase sheltered area. Otherwise, more likely to freeze in pot in ground than in ground without pot. And I would plunge it into coarser material than soil, such as mulch or sand.

    Another thing is that USDA 6 is probably warm enough to plant in fall anyway. The next one down the scale, USDA 5 is where it tends to start to be too cold for unlimited fall planting. Definitely on the border, what would happen would depend partly on what weather occurred after planting. If unusual cold came unusual damage might occur.

  • Embothrium
    16 years ago

    Let's change that to "Otherwise, seems more likely to freeze in pot in ground than in ground without pot" as I'm not sure this has actually been demonstrated in an organized way.

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