@sun good morning A, if you get a spare 20 minutes have a look at this. It will help visualise the art of pruning along with your book. It is for next Summer btw so worth keeping. He does not mess around when pruning !!!! It shows how open a Japanese maple should be.
@Acerholic, thank you, I am always grateful for every information on pruning, I will watch it tonight. Today it was raining a lot and everything was musdy, so I couldn't do as much as planned, but I made the slope less steep and prepared everything for sowing grass. However I am not going to do it before Tuesday evening or Wednesday as they say it will be raining heavily on Tuesday. And it would wash away the seeds on the hill. I also had to put a chicken fence around the area as our chicken love to eat grass seeds and they get all excited and scratch a lot as well. This is how it looks now. I think it's better now.
@sun that is amazing A. When the seed does grow you would think the maples have been there for a few years. I am very impressed at what you have already achieved !!! It does look so good to have the drip zone clear of anything and it will enable the roots to obtain oxygen and nutruents efficiently. You have given them the very best of starts. Well done!!
@Acerholic, thank you, yes, I will leave the drip zone clear. I am planning the locations for the other maples at the moment. I also consider where to put some of the future maples, so that there is a place reserved for them when they eventually arrive. That's why I would like to ask you about Ukigumo even as I do not have it atm: 1..Do you think sun till about 12 o clock is okay or still too much? 2. And I consider it for a place where I would like him to be at least 3 metres eventually. I read that it reaches this height in the end. Can you confirm this? 3. And could you tell me how its colours differ dependent on sun exposure? I would love if it were quite white and a bit pink in the location I plan for it... Sorry, many questions at the same time. It's not urgent, though.
@sun Ukigumo in morning sun until 12 noon is absolutely fine. Yes it will reach 3 mtrs in 10 years, but it is quite slow IMO. Regarding colouring it will keep it's whites longer the more shade it has and will have some gentle pinks also. If you can give it more shade the better. Hope thats of help A.
@Acerholic, thank you! If the wind is not so strong tomorrow as now, I will arrange the rest of my maples for a new idea of planting them all and post it. There is a gap after cutting down the bushes and the neighbour's tree on the fence where you can see a house of another neighbour. To hide it I would like to place Beni Otake on the lawn in the area between the ornamental cherry and the big birch. It would be allowed to grow big there and it would be a sight protection without being too dense. And I would like to be able to walk around it....
@sun Beni Otaki is ideal for 'partial' blocking of sights as it's a Linearilobum or Strap leaf maple. The burgundy reds do hold well, so would give a lovley interest. It is a tall grower and can reach 7 mtrs in 10 years, so do consider this when thinking about placement of this tree. But as you say you want something big in that position it should not be a problem. Look forward to seeing your next plans A.
@Acerholic , good afternoon D, I rearranged my maples like this: Atm I do not plan to put Shirazz in this area, it will probably stay in its pot till the chicken coop and everything else between the cherry and the Catalpa is gone. I think about placing Ukigumo where you can see Shirazz standing next to the chicken coop.
@sun good afternoon A, I like the idea of Ukigumo in that area. Lots of shade and it will lighten up the area being white, which it will keep all Summer as it is in a sheltered position. The staggered effect that you are arranging is very important, so as not to have a regimented straight border. The colours will pop individually so much more when not in a line. All going well A.
@sun , no I think they will look really good that distance apart. Later they will be different sizes and heights that will add to the interest. Too many times a specimen tree can look a little orchestrated. I hope you understand what I'm getting at. It is of course very important to consider what 'YOU' want aesthetically. There is no right or wrong way in your own garden.
@Acerholic , okay, I like it, it's just that I do not have the experience to be able to imagine how it will look in 15 years... I am for example not sure if Beni Otake and Tsuma Gaki will grow faster than Autumn Moon and it will be hidden by them. I know I can prune, but I think it is a good start if I arrange them wisely now. I think Beni Otake would be perfect if I can keep it at about 4 and a half metres. Can you estimate how wide it would be at that height?
@Acerholic , I also think it would look nice if Ukigumo with its white can be seen in the back and to the left of Beni Otake with its red.
@Acerholic , another question: I consider Shin Deshojo fo a place of full sun next to Koto no ito. Do you think it would like that?
@Acerholic, I always want to make sure that they all have at least a very good chance that they like their spots as every hole digging is a real challenge in our garden, so I cannot switch them every year or so.
@sun definatly arrange correctly now A. Beni otaki is 4 x4 mtrs in 10 years. Tsuma Gaki is about 3 x 3 mtrs in 20 years and is a very much slower grower than a lot of others. Autumn moon is 3x3 mtrs in 10 years and a slightly slower grower than Beni Otaki IMO. It copes with a little more sun than the other Shirasawanum's. Does that help ?
@sun Shindeshojo in my garden takes sun in the morning up until 1300hrs. It is not known for full sun and needs some shelter from the wind. So if you are considering full afternoon sun for this one, perhaps it is not the best option.
@Acerholic, my husband has just come home and he and the kids also love how it looks. We will put some stones there now to mark the spots and put the maples back to their wind protected places for the night.
@sun yes so do not rush in planting them. It is exciting to get it all done, I have been there myself. But if you can make the position it's final place, all the better for the future of your tree.
