Adam,

The A. palmatum is dormant for the winter in your neck of the woods and
should have either dead brown leaves or no leaves at all. If after a two to
three weeks of above freezing weather and sun this spring it is in the same
condition then you have need to be concerned. Whether or not the tree drops
its leaves in the fall depends upon how it entered dormancy in the fall -
most of my maples are in the cold frame with leaves.

In a colder, harder winter boxwood leaves will often brown and sometimes
fall off. My finding is that this stresses boxwoods more than if they end
up keeping their leaves in a greenish state. However, I am sure if varies
from variety to variety.

It looks to me like you need to let the trees rest for the winter and not
worry about them once you have them settled in. Once mine are put away I
water them about once a month (hopefully when it is above freezing) and
close the door to the cold frame when the low is expected to be below about
15F (-9C). Otherwise, it is a time to work with a few indoor trees and plan
for the spring.

Regards - Marty

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