In article , Klara
wrote:

In message , Emery Davis
writes
You know it won't grow in chalk. Otherwise not too picky about soil,
although prefers slightly acidic. Don't use much soil amendment in
heavy soil, it causes drainage problems. If you're in heavy clay, the
best bet is to build up on top of the soil, if you want to keep the
tree small (bear in mind Sango kaku is a 12 foot tree). Otherwise you
can certainly grow A. palmatum in clay, but very tough to establish.

Don't fertilize beyond a little bone meal, you can do a little osmocote
the second year.

Good luck. Even experienced maple growers kill scads of these (and
Sango kaku is pretty tricky) so "If at first you don't succeed..."

We were given one for our coral anniversary a couple of years ago, and
in our ignorance have been really successful with it - so far. But I
have just gone out to have a closer look, and most of the bark has been
stripped from it at a level that makes me suspect our cat! Any ideas how
I can bandage it to help it to heal and at the same time keep the cat
from further damaging it?

Rabbits love sweet young bark and have been the certain cause of young
saplings of mine being stripped back to bare wood from approx 18in high
down to ground level. A low coil of chicken wire should provide
protection.

In message , Stan The Man
writes
We were given one for our coral anniversary a couple of years ago, and
in our ignorance have been really successful with it - so far. But I
have just gone out to have a closer look, and most of the bark has been
stripped from it at a level that makes me suspect our cat! Any ideas how
I can bandage it to help it to heal and at the same time keep the cat
from further damaging it?

Rabbits love sweet young bark and have been the certain cause of young
saplings of mine being stripped back to bare wood from approx 18in high
down to ground level. A low coil of chicken wire should provide
protection.

It was at around 18 inches, so I discounted rabbits ... also, we have
lots of foxes and haven't seen rabbits in a long time. But there are
deer and badgers.... In any case, the chicken wire idea should work on
whatever it is - thanks!

Should I paint the trunk with something in the hope that it will protect
the tree from infection, given that quite a bit of bark is missing?

Thanks!

--
Klara, Gatwick basin

In article , Klara
wrote:

In message , Stan The Man
writes
We were given one for our coral anniversary a couple of years ago, and
in our ignorance have been really successful with it - so far. But I
have just gone out to have a closer look, and most of the bark has been
stripped from it at a level that makes me suspect our cat! Any ideas how
I can bandage it to help it to heal and at the same time keep the cat
from further damaging it?

Rabbits love sweet young bark and have been the certain cause of young
saplings of mine being stripped back to bare wood from approx 18in high
down to ground level. A low coil of chicken wire should provide
protection.

It was at around 18 inches, so I discounted rabbits ... also, we have
lots of foxes and haven't seen rabbits in a long time. But there are
deer and badgers.... In any case, the chicken wire idea should work on
whatever it is - thanks!

Should I paint the trunk with something in the hope that it will protect
the tree from infection, given that quite a bit of bark is missing?

If the full circumference is stripped I fear you will lose the tree as
the sap won't be able to travel up to the leaves. In any event it is
likely that there will be no new growth above the stripped bark albeit
you may get some new growth at ground level. Cork trees seem to cope
well when their bark is stripped/harvested but they are an exception.

If the full circumference is stripped I fear you will lose the tree as
the sap won't be able to travel up to the leaves. In any event it is
likely that there will be no new growth above the stripped bark albeit
you may get some new growth at ground level. Cork trees seem to cope
well when their bark is stripped/harvested but they are an exception.

I've always wondered about that. Is the explanation that it's not
actually the bark itself that carries the sap up the tree but the very
thin layer just inside it (phloem????), and which is destroyed in most
trees when you remove the bark. But on a cork oak the bark is so thick
you can remove the bark without removing that layer? Or is the layer
also thicker on a cork oak?
--
Kay

In article ,
wrote:


If the full circumference is stripped I fear you will lose the tree as
the sap won't be able to travel up to the leaves. In any event it is
likely that there will be no new growth above the stripped bark albeit
you may get some new growth at ground level. Cork trees seem to cope
well when their bark is stripped/harvested but they are an exception.

I've always wondered about that. Is the explanation that it's not
actually the bark itself that carries the sap up the tree but the very
thin layer just inside it (phloem????), and which is destroyed in most
trees when you remove the bark. But on a cork oak the bark is so thick
you can remove the bark without removing that layer? Or is the layer
also thicker on a cork oak?

I believe that cork is harvested from the outer layer of the bark but
the more likely reason for the tree's survival and bark regeneration is
that the bark is stripped in a spiral and so the stripping never
completes the fatal circle.

Stan The Man writes
In article ,
wrote:


If the full circumference is stripped I fear you will lose the tree as
the sap won't be able to travel up to the leaves. In any event it is
likely that there will be no new growth above the stripped bark albeit
you may get some new growth at ground level. Cork trees seem to cope
well when their bark is stripped/harvested but they are an exception.

I've always wondered about that. Is the explanation that it's not
actually the bark itself that carries the sap up the tree but the very
thin layer just inside it (phloem????), and which is destroyed in most
trees when you remove the bark. But on a cork oak the bark is so thick
you can remove the bark without removing that layer? Or is the layer
also thicker on a cork oak?

I believe that cork is harvested from the outer layer of the bark but
the more likely reason for the tree's survival and bark regeneration is
that the bark is stripped in a spiral and so the stripping never
completes the fatal circle.

That method of cutting doesn't tie up with what I've observed in
Portugal, which is that the circumference is completely stripped and the
removed pieces of bark form a cylinder with vertical cut, with no
indication that the cut edges don't match up perfectly.

Googling suggests you're right in that it's only the outer layer, eg:

(from http://www.killerplants.com/weird-plants/20040101.asp)

"Cork oaks produce a unique bark. Phloem and xylem derive from the
cambium, a thin cylinder of actively dividing cells in the trunk and
branches. Phloem tissue is created to the outside of the cambium; xylem
to the inside.

As the tree grows in diameter, xylem becomes wood; phloem becomes bark.
In the cork oak, the cambium is called the "mother of cork".

Unlike most trees that shed the outermost layers of bark, the cork oak
retains its bark. The bark is insulating--it protects the living cambium
from heat. The bark is lightweight, crossed by lenticels or pores that
allow the exchange of gases between the living cells and the atmosphere.
The bark is fire-resistant; the outer layers will char, but not burn,
during a wildfire."

.... in other words, it's as if a birch tree, say, didn't shed all those
lovely sheets of paper and instead stacked them up until we harvested
them in one go several years later.

--
Kay

In message , Stan The Man
writes
Should I paint the trunk with something in the hope that it will protect
the tree from infection, given that quite a bit of bark is missing?

If the full circumference is stripped I fear you will lose the tree as
the sap won't be able to travel up to the leaves. In any event it is
likely that there will be no new growth above the stripped bark albeit
you may get some new growth at ground level. Cork trees seem to cope
well when their bark is stripped/harvested but they are an exception.

It is stripped the way something with claws would do it, and actually
mostly on one side, so there is a bit that is still intact. Is there
some sort of first aid I can apply, to try to salvage it? (It's a lovely
little tree, and, of course, an anniversary gift from our three
daughters....)

There is a lot of new growth from below that point, but that would turn
more into something like a bush....
--
Klara, Gatwick basin

On 11/10/07 08:40, in article ,
"Klara" wrote:

In message , Stan The Man
writes
Should I paint the trunk with something in the hope that it will protect
the tree from infection, given that quite a bit of bark is missing?

If the full circumference is stripped I fear you will lose the tree as
the sap won't be able to travel up to the leaves. In any event it is
likely that there will be no new growth above the stripped bark albeit
you may get some new growth at ground level. Cork trees seem to cope
well when their bark is stripped/harvested but they are an exception.

It is stripped the way something with claws would do it, and actually
mostly on one side, so there is a bit that is still intact. Is there
some sort of first aid I can apply, to try to salvage it? (It's a lovely
little tree, and, of course, an anniversary gift from our three
daughters....)

There is a lot of new growth from below that point, but that would turn
more into something like a bush....

I'd still keep the new growth and I'd invest in one of those spiral plastic
tree guards, too.
--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
(remove weeds from address)
'We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our
children.'

To the original poster:

The smaller the tree is when you plant it, the better it will establish and grow on. Most potted trees in garden centres are pot-bound - their roots are going round in circles in too small a container. You can tease out the roots to a degree but it's never quite the same.

If the tree is bare-rooted, it has lost a good proportion of its roots when removed from the soil. The smaller the tree, the less proportion it has lost. Commercial forestry nurseries, for example, undercut their seedlings in situ to encourage new growth of feeding roots at the expense of support roots. This means the seedling will feed itself well when planted out but it has to be small enough not to be blown over.

It is rare to get a really good tree at the normal garden centre. It's usually best to hunt out a specialist in the trees you are after.

Hope this helps.

In article , Klara
wrote:

In message , Stan The Man
writes
Should I paint the trunk with something in the hope that it will protect
the tree from infection, given that quite a bit of bark is missing?

If the full circumference is stripped I fear you will lose the tree as
the sap won't be able to travel up to the leaves. In any event it is
likely that there will be no new growth above the stripped bark albeit
you may get some new growth at ground level. Cork trees seem to cope
well when their bark is stripped/harvested but they are an exception.

It is stripped the way something with claws would do it, and actually
mostly on one side, so there is a bit that is still intact. Is there
some sort of first aid I can apply, to try to salvage it? (It's a lovely
little tree, and, of course, an anniversary gift from our three
daughters....)

There is a lot of new growth from below that point, but that would turn
more into something like a bush....

You could try something like Prune & Seal - see
http://www.growingsuccess.org.uk/det...eal&cat=Garden
_Care - but I wouldn't be optimistic.

Squirrels like to strip bark too.

Well i've been a purchased the Osakazuki i showed you in the picture, it was too nice a plant to turn down.

I am a little confused though. Emery above says not to plant the tree now. Whereas i asked the guy at the garden centre out of curiosity and he said to get it in the ground now. Dig a whole twice as big, both width and depth as the current pot its in and mix in some ericaceous compost with the existing soil. Soak the plant for 10 mins before planting and then water again once in.

Confused? I am!

Any clarification as what to do next would be very much appreciated.

Cheers.

On Thu, 11 Oct 2007 19:57:42 +0100
Zarch wrote:


Well i've been a purchased the Osakazuki i showed you in the picture, it
was too nice a plant to turn down.

I am a little confused though. Emery above says not to plant the tree
now. Whereas i asked the guy at the garden centre out of curiosity and
he said to get it in the ground now. Dig a whole twice as big, both
width and depth as the current pot its in and mix in some ericaceous
compost with the existing soil. Soak the plant for 10 mins before
planting and then water again once in.

Confused? I am!

Any clarification as what to do next would be very much appreciated.


Been out of town, just catching up.

The only reason to plant the Osakazuki (nice tree, much less tricky than Sango
kaku BTW) now is if it's a 2 year or less graft and still in original medium. In
which case it needs to get into the ground asap. But this is unlikely, so otherwise
you should wait until the plant is dormant.

Replying to a couple of other points brought up in the thread. Klara, if the stripped
bark rings the tree so that the cambium is broken, everything above that point
will die. You might as well cut it back now, and start pruning for basic shape
next year. This is better than starting again because your maple is already somewhat
established, which is the hard part. If 90 degrees or more of cambium remains at
any place my experience is that the tree might recover. Use a sharp pruning knife
to clean up the wounds, and then _do not_ at all costs treat or fertilize. Do your
best to keep the area dry. The only reason to start over will be if the damage is
below the original graft, in which case you have just the root stock. (Which will
be nice but will also grow into a large tree!)

Whoever said that you should use the smallest plant possible doesn't have much
experience growing maples, I fear. While this is true for many plants, it is very
difficult to establish young grafts of A. palmatum directly in the garden. This is
common knowledge in the maple world.

-E

--
Emery Davis
You can reply to ecom
by removing the well known companies
Questions about wine? Visit http://winefaq.hostexcellence.com

All,

Thought i'd resurrect this thread as i think it might be the right time to get the Acer in the ground now. (well this coming weekend)

To re-cap its an Osakazuki that i bought back in November of last year.

I have a spot in the garden ready for it, i would just like some final clarification about the best way to prepare the hole and how to plant etc.

Is the following advice from the garden centre along the right lines?

"Dig a whole twice as big, both width and depth as the current pot its in and mix in some ericaceous compost with the existing soil. Soak the plant for 10 mins before planting and then water again once in."

Do i need to plant it deep in the hole and really hide the rootball? Or does it need to be towards ground level?

Do i need any feed or anything in the hole as well as a bit of ericaceous compost?

Any help would be very very much appreciated............

Cheers, Mick

Klara wrote:

It is stripped the way something with claws would do it, and actually
mostly on one side, so there is a bit that is still intact. Is there
some sort of first aid I can apply, to try to salvage it? (It's a lovely
little tree, and, of course, an anniversary gift from our three
daughters....)

I would simply go with the chicken wire advice. Even when limbs
are removed, current thinking is not to paint anything on.

I has a similar experience, a few years ago, and the tree has
grown to have a healthy 6 inch trunk, and right now a mass of
golden leaves.

Chris
--
Chris J Dixon Nottingham UK


Have dancing shoes, will ceilidh.