Japanese Acer or Japanese Maple

[Tomas]

I have recently been given a Japanese Acer or Japanese Maple,(not sure what they are called ).Has anyone any info on growing them and generally looking after them,also feeding them. Would welcome any info no matter how small. Thanks all.
Tomas.

[nick the grief]

Hi Tomas,

I've got one in a large pot (about 2ft accross) in Ericaceous compost topped with Gravel and it's fine. THey are relativley slow growing, don't like extremes of anyhting Heat, cold Damp or wind so warm sheltered is good. Keep them well watered otherwise they drop there leaves and I give it a couple fo feeds on tomato feed a year.

Hope that helps

[smallblueplanet]

Ours is a twenty-five year old acer palmatum bloodgood, also in a container. Its treated badly by me (guilty as charged ) but mostly affected by wind - which its leaves really dislike. And watch out for aphids/blackfly on new leaves/growth in spring.

[Alice]

Hello Tomas, nice to see you, been missing for a while ?
Yes the Acers can be fussy. I have them in my garden. Mostly planted about the same time. Some are now trees and some are quite small shrubs, Some died.
All I can say is if they like it , they like it, and if they don't they dont. And if they really like it, they will seed themselves about the place - will find pics of this years seedlings. And if they don't like it nothing will make them grow. Sorry if this is not helpful - but in my experience that's the way it is. Good luck.

[witch-1]

I love mine... it was brought for £15 as quite a small plant (about 8"). I potted it (at the time only had a pot garden - rest was shingle). Its now in a large pot and is about 2.5' tall and 3' wide - its a beautiful mini tree.

I used the recommended soil and the only care I take is not to water the leaves - let nature do that for me - as they are quite delicate.

Good luck
Jan
x

[Flummery]

I have 2 in small pots in the garden. I've never fed them (wicked woman) and they are in John Innes 3. I grew one from seed about 20 years ago - it's a deep garnet in colour. The other was a gift - a fresh green leaf with a pinky-red edge in spring. I knock them out and change the compost occasionally - once in a Sheffield Flood kind of thing. I put them into the greenhouse in winter, hold off with the watering, and start to water again in spring. I tend not to bring them out permanently until end of April - the new leaves can get severely wind burnt. I have found them very easy plants but I suspect they are simply hard and tough because of the treatment (or lack) that they get here!

[TPeers]

I have three different maples, two are japanese types. A dissectum atropurpureum (sp?) and a 'unknown'. All are planted in the garden which is clay over chalk and they are doing fine.

You need to keep them watered, even in winter (not a problem this year) and especially in early spring as the sap rises. If you can give them protection from the wind they do better but generally no problems.

Terry

[Tomas]

Thanks all for your info on Japanese Acer's (or Maples).It's nice to have someone to turn to. Good luck all and thanks again.
Tomas

[Alison]

I have one in a pot and thought I'd killed it last year when all the leaves went brown and crinkly but I cosseted it in the green house over winter (unheated) and it's come back a treat. From talking to friends I think it was wind damage so have put it somewhere much more sheltered this year.