... but it feels like Autumn was back : 23.9° on Monday, 7°C at noon today ! I went out to take a couple of photos, hoping the leaves won't suffer too much. 'Purple Ghost', ''Como', 'Peaches and Cream' and 'Trompenburg' (with 'Butterfly' in the bg) :
A couple more : 'Okushimo', 'Starfish', and 'Deshojo' in the foreground with 'Phoenix' in the middle distance :
Whoops, thank you Acerholic! Let’s try that again :) Hana Tsukasa: Shojo No Mai: Shoryu-no-tsume: Jordan: Allen’s Gold:
With the recent cold weather the majority of the JM's are stuck at the bud break stage. A couple of volunteers, first two pics are one I really like which popped up in the gravel some years ago and is related to Trompenburg but smaller in all parts. Third pic is one I spotted today growing under a potted dissectum, a year old and only 4cm tall!
Now its April showers, but before the rain this morning I took these to show that the frosts did not hit all of mine. Koto ito komachi Peve multicolour Milligan Pixie Viridis MikawaYatsubusa Azuma Murasaki I think the rain will do the maples a lot of good. It's been so dry !! They should all start to leaf out now.
They are swelling up really fast now. Not as far on as others on the forum but on the way. Starfish Osakasuki Flavesecens Villa Taranto White peaches Vitifolium (hit by the hard frosts) only just coming back Garnet Another frost forecast for Friday, so my fingers are tightly crossed.
22C in the fraser valley yesterday, finally a taste of spring heat! Our greenhouse transformed into a happy hour / dinner party room with plenty of potted maples and roses / herbs / veggies. The pixie, red dragon, two viridis, a couple of bloodgoods and a few seedlings all starting to open up with their spring colors now.
thanks! Well we need some where to rest and reflect after working in the garden. And an added bonus, I don't have to remove my shoes
Ground hog day!! First pic April 1st 2021 , Second pic April 8th 2022 and i am still putting trees away at night, bitter cold last night with frost and same again for this evening. Beginning to see a pattern forming now ? Must start getting warmer at some point soon.
I think your right M. Looking at the next couple days forecast, it's going to be -3°c here overnight also. Each Spring is just such a worry for our trees now. Perhaps the greenhouse route is what we should be thinking for the future.
Akane: Shigitatsu Sawa: Kumoi Nishiki (probably my favorite): Tsuma Gaki: Autumn Moon: Radiant: Hot Blonde: Microphyllum: Bashful: Naguri Nishiki: Olsen’s Frosted Strawberry: Usugumo: Hefner’s Red Select: Amber Ghost: Hana Tsukasa:
Very nice, @ATX And congratulations, I think it's not easy to maintain them in such a climate as the one in Austin, Tx. I can see you have one of my favourites, Tsuma gaki : I hardly can keep mine until Autumn/Fall without the leaves being curled. How about yours ? Any tricks ? Nice to see a maple fan from Texas, welcome to the forum...
Thanks! This will be my second full year with most of them. I’ve found that plenty of water and well draining soil is key. I water every two days when the weather is hot and I try to do it during the hottest part of the day to give the plants some relief. They also need time to adjust. I’ve found that I should order trees from nurseries in the south if at all possible. They are more heat adapted that way. I think it takes 2-3 years for the trees to fully adjust to central TX weather. Some are definitely more heat/dry air tolerant than others. Most have not been tried here. I plan to post updates throughout the year.
You're right, it's always better to get plants that, to some extent, have adapted to the local climate. We look forward to seeing your posts, you're doing a great job so far. Kudos on you !
I mainly took this picture to show the sap sucking beastie for another post, but it captured the emerging spring foliage so well that I decided to put it here. I think it is Sawa chidori, not 100% sure as I was concentrating on the bug rather than the cultivar!
I won't post pictures of some of my maples that are loaded with hundreds of aphids to the square inch, I've given up both organic or chemical sprays. Let it be.
