On May 8, 1:35*pm, Emery Davis wrote:
On 05/08/2011 12:14 PM, Jake wrote:

So I'm at a loss; the only thing I can think of is that there are
actually two grafts but that seems daft.

It certainly is possible to do multiple grafts on the same understock,
some specialists do so but it's not current practice in the trade. *Too
expensive to do in volume.

It's unlikely that any mutation like a witch's broom would give such
vigorous growth as you see. And besides it would probably be red, I've
never heard of a red tree throwing a green sport. *(Not to say it's
never happened, of course).

I can't see where the grafts are in the picture, but most likely the
grafted part was dying and so the understock went.

I'm currently tempted to waste it and get a new one but I wonder
whether it's worth chopping all the green out and seeing what happens
first - it'll look like one silly tree though.

If you chop out the green it will likely die. *Still those are some
unusual looking leaves, not sure I've seen such rounded lobes before.
At first glance I wouldn't even identify that as A. palmatum! *Might be
worth saving.

-E

A lot of top grafts are just done to one side, if there was a bud
clost to it on the other side this may well have grown on to give you
the bush/tree you now have developing.
You could do a lot of pruning to get it into shape and try re grafting
from the bit of the red acer you have left, what have you to loose?