First, Steve W (Hi Steve!) asked if there was a problem with landscape
japanese maples on Long Island. Well, yes. The problem is that
everyone plants them in full sun in the front yard, and then hits them
with the lawnmower. They do fine for years, until a cold winter or a
hot summer stresses them, and then they drop branches. The best
solution is frequent fertilization and good watering in hot summer
months with a soaker hose. Japanese maples are trees of the lower
canopy in the mountains of Japan, and really won't thrive in the
center of a lawn.

The Anil asked:

Coming back again on the fertilizing a freshly root-pruned plant, I
will request Nina to throw some light on this point. Please Nina!

Everything I know about fertilization I learned from Brent Walston,
who actually raises trees for a living. Me, I just have book
learnin'. Brent once wrote an extensive post on this subject, the
point being that a tree will take up only as much fertilizer as it has
the roots to take up, so the strength of the fertilizer after
transplanting is completely immaterial (assuming, of course, that you
aren't over-fertilizing to the point of toxicity). I will point out
that roots aren't intelligent; they don't grow out "looking" for
nutrients, they just grow out. The main factor influencing root
development is soil structure. A dense soil impedes root growth, and
anything that inhibits growth (dryness, lack of nutrients) will cause
poor root growth.

Nina

First, Steve W (Hi Steve!) asked if there was a problem with landscape
japanese maples on Long Island. Well, yes. The problem is that
everyone plants them in full sun in the front yard, and then hits them
with the lawnmower. They do fine for years, until a cold winter or a
hot summer stresses them, and then they drop branches. The best
solution is frequent fertilization and good watering in hot summer
months with a soaker hose. Japanese maples are trees of the lower
canopy in the mountains of Japan, and really won't thrive in the
center of a lawn.

The Anil asked:

Coming back again on the fertilizing a freshly root-pruned plant, I
will request Nina to throw some light on this point. Please Nina!

Everything I know about fertilization I learned from Brent Walston,
who actually raises trees for a living. Me, I just have book
learnin'. Brent once wrote an extensive post on this subject, the
point being that a tree will take up only as much fertilizer as it has
the roots to take up, so the strength of the fertilizer after
transplanting is completely immaterial (assuming, of course, that you
aren't over-fertilizing to the point of toxicity). I will point out
that roots aren't intelligent; they don't grow out "looking" for
nutrients, they just grow out. The main factor influencing root
development is soil structure. A dense soil impedes root growth, and
anything that inhibits growth (dryness, lack of nutrients) will cause
poor root growth.

Nina

The problem is that everyone plants them in full sun in the front yard, and
then hits them with the lawnmower. They do fine for years, until a cold winter
or a hot summer stresses them, and then they drop branches. The best
solution is frequent fertilization and good watering in hot summer months with
a soaker hose.

The Atropurpureum type Japanese maples do quite well here in Central NY. I have
seen one as tall as the house it is planted in front of. Mine is at the
southwest corner of the foundation planting, but it is lightly shaded by a pine
tree in the neighbor's yard. Without being fed, it needs severe pruning every
other year. We have relatively cool summers, with an average of 4 days over 90.
As long as it is a variety that is hardy to Zone 5, our winters don't bother
them.
I have a 'Butterfly' on its own roots in the northeast corner. It survived last
winter with only a little dieback.
My bonsai maples do pretty well. They are in not quite full sun, fertilized
plenty, and given Pro-TeKt occasionally.
Iris,
Central NY, Zone 5a, Sunset Zone 40
"If we see light at the end of the tunnel, It's the light of the oncoming
train."
Robert Lowell (1917-1977)

The problem is that everyone plants them in full sun in the front yard, and
then hits them with the lawnmower. They do fine for years, until a cold winter
or a hot summer stresses them, and then they drop branches. The best
solution is frequent fertilization and good watering in hot summer months with
a soaker hose.

The Atropurpureum type Japanese maples do quite well here in Central NY. I have
seen one as tall as the house it is planted in front of. Mine is at the
southwest corner of the foundation planting, but it is lightly shaded by a pine
tree in the neighbor's yard. Without being fed, it needs severe pruning every
other year. We have relatively cool summers, with an average of 4 days over 90.
As long as it is a variety that is hardy to Zone 5, our winters don't bother
them.
I have a 'Butterfly' on its own roots in the northeast corner. It survived last
winter with only a little dieback.
My bonsai maples do pretty well. They are in not quite full sun, fertilized
plenty, and given Pro-TeKt occasionally.
Iris,
Central NY, Zone 5a, Sunset Zone 40
"If we see light at the end of the tunnel, It's the light of the oncoming
train."
Robert Lowell (1917-1977)