How to get major backbudding on maples?

[DEVPB]

Evening all,

I currently have quite a few Maples, Japanese and Trident, and I was hoping to get some help on two of them specifically.

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As you can see, they're both very long to thicken the trunks and roots, and as they're nearing the point where I'm happy with the thicknessI am keen to take the design process to the next point.


What is the best course of action to get both a Japanese maple and a Trident maple to back bud on the trunk? I’m very cautious/scared to do any sort of trunk chopping especially since the roots have nicely grabbed the rocks they are planted over after a few years and I would hate to kill the trees after waiting so long. I know you can't dictate where buds are going to pop exactly, but I'm hoping to get SOMETHING a significant amount closer to where the bases are now. The Japanese maple was grown from a seedling and I'm very attached to it.


Any information about the best process as well as time of year would be greatly appreciate, or potentially a link to a very in depth and informative video would also be wonderful. I currently reside in North Birsbane to give an idea of the climate.


Thanks in advance everyone.

[Stu]

I would try leaf removal. Assuming they are healthy and strong and they respond the same in Brisbane. Now would be a good time in Melbourne.
Cut off all leaves at the base leaving the petiole (leaf stem). They will fall of in time. It may take a week or two to see results and the leaves and internode lengths may also be smaller.
Good luck.

[Phil Rabl]

J maples and T maples have a habit of throwing buds from time to time, including on the trunk. Not necessarily where you want them though. Normal trimming will induce back-budding, but again, not necessarily where you want a new branch. I would think seriously about a thread graft, or two. Both species lend themselves to thread grafting. In this option you can get the new branch(es) exactly where you want it/them. If you need advice on how to do a thread graft, this link to the Bonsai4me web site should help. http://www.bonsai4me.com/AdvTech/ATthreadgrafting.htm

[DEVPB]

J maples and T maples have a habit of throwing buds from time to time, including on the trunk. Not necessarily where you want them though. Normal trimming will induce back-budding, but again, not necessarily where you want a new branch. I would think seriously about a thread graft, or two. Both species lend themselves to thread grafting. In this option you can get the new branch(es) exactly where you want it/them. If you need advice on how to do a thread graft, this link to the Bonsai4me web site should help. http://www.bonsai4me.com/AdvTech/ATthreadgrafting.htm

Is there somewhere where I can get a general crash course on maples? I'm always scared of timing when it comes to major cuts and trimming branches as I know Japanese Maples have a tendency to bleed hard. would be good to have a go to for the coming years.

[shibui]

Hi DEVPB.
For a start trees respond differently in different climates and Australia is a big place with many diverse climate zones. You will get much better responses if you add a location to your profile so that anyone can see at a glance what area you live in. Much better than adding it as an afterthought to a post because you have to remember to do that each time.

Maples are like many other species in that they usually try to bud as close to the top as possible. That's really sensible when you look at from their point of view because in nature there's a race to be the tallest tree in the forest and the losers can even die from being too slow.
The only way I know to get sure budding low is to prune as hard as you can. Just remember that most of the new buds will be from the uppermost nodes you leave so just taking out a few tips is not going to get buds way back on the bare trunk.
I remember a few trees that refused to bud no matter how hard I cut the leafy stems. After trying a few years in a row I resorted to grafting and finally got a new bud when the top of the tree was chopped above the new graft.
Now I know how they respond I am much more confident about cutting hard enough to get better results.

I know it can be frightening for a start, not knowing just how the plants will respond but you should rest assured that most of the horror stories you read and hear are exceptions rather than the rule. Trees are much more resilient that we give them credit for.
JM bleeding is an issue but I find it only occurs from mid winter through to leaf out in spring. I can chop JM hard in late spring, summer or autumn without any sap loss at all.

I believe that one of the best sources on maples as bonsai is a recent book by Andrea Meriggioli. Written in Italy but maples are still maples wherever you are.
Your local bonsai clubs are another great source of help because the members do know the local weather and timing.

[thoglette]

The only way I know to get sure budding low is to prune as hard as you can. Just remember that most of the new buds will be from the uppermost nodes you leave so just taking out a few tips is not going to get buds way back on the bare trunk.

The other alternative is thread grafting - this can solve the "I need a branch here" problem, as back grafting is unlikely to kick buds out on the trunk or major branches.

There are a number of good books on Maples, I have Peter Adam's book and can highly recommend it for those new(ish) to the genus


Here's Major Valve, Major Backbudding's cousin

[Keels]

Another fantastic book is called Bonsai Maples by Andrea Meriggioli. Just make sure you get the English translated version

[Grant Bowie]

To prevent heavy bleeding after trimming, you need to repot the tree, ie cut some roots. This stops the roots sucking up too much water and lessons the systemic pressure which causes it to bleed.

Grant