I've been offered a 3' Japanese Maple by a co-worker who wants to get it out of his yard. When would be the best time to dig this tree up and re-plant it in mine? Is dormancy the best time to do this or should I wait til spring?
I'll try to get a pic up of it later.
Here are pics of the maple in question. Sorry for the quality. They were taken with his cell phone. So should I go dig it up now or wait til spring?
[img]https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v82/golfballman/Bonsai/mapleb.jpg[/img]
[img]https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v82/golfballman/Bonsai/maplec.jpg[/img]
Cuda
[img]https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v82/golfballman/Bonsai/mapleb.jpg[/img]
[img]https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v82/golfballman/Bonsai/maplec.jpg[/img]
Cuda
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Gnome
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Cuda52774,
If he will allow it to stay until spring I would wait, that's really the best time, just before bud break. If he must be rid of it now then you have little choice. What are you considering doing with it? Especially hold off if you are going to bare root it in order to remove the old soil. If you are going to plant it out in your yard then you might get away with transplanting it now, considering your climate.
Do you know anything about it? Variety, is it grafted etc?
Norm
If he will allow it to stay until spring I would wait, that's really the best time, just before bud break. If he must be rid of it now then you have little choice. What are you considering doing with it? Especially hold off if you are going to bare root it in order to remove the old soil. If you are going to plant it out in your yard then you might get away with transplanting it now, considering your climate.
Do you know anything about it? Variety, is it grafted etc?
Norm
Nope. The tree was in the yard from the former owner. He says he thinks it stays red year round but that's about it. He said it can wait until spring, but he's about to change shifts so I won't be working with him anymore. I'm worried the offer might not be there in the spring. If I transplanted it now, I would plant it in my yard and give it a year to establish itself before chopping it the following spring and letting it back bud.Gnome wrote:Cuda52774,
If he will allow it to stay until spring I would wait, that's really the best time, just before bud break. If he must be rid of it now then you have little choice. What are you considering doing with it? Especially hold off if you are going to bare root it in order to remove the old soil. If you are going to plant it out in your yard then you might get away with transplanting it now, considering your climate.
Do you know anything about it? Variety, is it grafted etc?
Norm
Cuda
Cuda
Ok, I'm just about ready to get this maple out of his yard and transfer it to mine.
Under the advice of AlexinOklahoma and some others I'm considering boxiing is so that it will be easier to work it later.
I need some info on how to do this and what is involved while having a tree in a box.
How do you build one? (size?)
What materials do you use? (I have some pressure treated lumber left over from building my deck. Would that be safe for the tree considering the chemicals used in the treatment of the wood?)
How do you treat it differently in the winter? (Kinda hard to move a boxed tree into the garage).
Any advice or links to useful articles would be much appreciated.
Thanks.
Cuda
Under the advice of AlexinOklahoma and some others I'm considering boxiing is so that it will be easier to work it later.
I need some info on how to do this and what is involved while having a tree in a box.
How do you build one? (size?)
What materials do you use? (I have some pressure treated lumber left over from building my deck. Would that be safe for the tree considering the chemicals used in the treatment of the wood?)
How do you treat it differently in the winter? (Kinda hard to move a boxed tree into the garage).
Any advice or links to useful articles would be much appreciated.
Thanks.
Cuda
-
Gnome
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 5122
- Joined: Wed Jul 05, 2006 12:17 am
- Location: Western PA USDA Zone 6A
Cuda,
[url=https://img508.imageshack.us/my.php?image=growboxsv9.jpg][img]https://img508.imageshack.us/img508/8238/growboxsv9.th.jpg[/img][/url]
[url=https://img183.imageshack.us/my.php?image=1025xf0.jpg][img]https://img183.imageshack.us/img183/309/1025xf0.th.jpg[/img][/url]
It is made from 1 x material (3/4" thick) and about 4 or 5 inches high. It is untreated pine. This one is probably about 4 or 5 years old and has held up better than I expected. Make sure it is elevated, this one has slats. 1/8" hardware cloth keeps the soil in place. There is also a plastic material that comes in rolls and is intended to keep debris out of gutters.
Don't make the mistake of making it too large. A large volume of un-colonized soil will stay wet too long. If you're good with tools it won't take more than a hour or so to knock one out if you have the materials on hand. If you dig the plant first you will be able to size the box appropriately.
https://www.evergreengardenworks.com/overpot.htm
https://www.evergreengardenworks.com/earthpot.htm
Norm
Here's a picture of one I made a few years ago.How do you build one? (size?)
What materials do you use? (I have some pressure treated lumber left over from building my deck. Would that be safe for the tree considering the chemicals used in the treatment of the wood?)
[url=https://img508.imageshack.us/my.php?image=growboxsv9.jpg][img]https://img508.imageshack.us/img508/8238/growboxsv9.th.jpg[/img][/url]
[url=https://img183.imageshack.us/my.php?image=1025xf0.jpg][img]https://img183.imageshack.us/img183/309/1025xf0.th.jpg[/img][/url]
It is made from 1 x material (3/4" thick) and about 4 or 5 inches high. It is untreated pine. This one is probably about 4 or 5 years old and has held up better than I expected. Make sure it is elevated, this one has slats. 1/8" hardware cloth keeps the soil in place. There is also a plastic material that comes in rolls and is intended to keep debris out of gutters.
Don't make the mistake of making it too large. A large volume of un-colonized soil will stay wet too long. If you're good with tools it won't take more than a hour or so to knock one out if you have the materials on hand. If you dig the plant first you will be able to size the box appropriately.
https://www.evergreengardenworks.com/overpot.htm
https://www.evergreengardenworks.com/earthpot.htm
Norm
As per usual Norm, you come through with flying colors. 
So during the winter, the pot is not so large that it cannot be moved in and out of a protected space (I.e. garage).
So, I dig up the tree, find the boundary of the root ball and make the box only slightly larger to give it room to grow over the next year or two. I'd like to take this opportunity to let the trunk thicken. How much bigger than the root ball should I make the box in order to maximize growth without causing root rot?
I do worry that the chemicals in the pressure treated wood may hurt the tree. Guess I need to invest in a bit of lumber. Just wish I could use that extra deck wood since it's just sitting in a burn pile waiting to be torched........Has anyone used pressure treated wood to build a box such as this??
Cuda
So during the winter, the pot is not so large that it cannot be moved in and out of a protected space (I.e. garage).
So, I dig up the tree, find the boundary of the root ball and make the box only slightly larger to give it room to grow over the next year or two. I'd like to take this opportunity to let the trunk thicken. How much bigger than the root ball should I make the box in order to maximize growth without causing root rot?
I do worry that the chemicals in the pressure treated wood may hurt the tree. Guess I need to invest in a bit of lumber. Just wish I could use that extra deck wood since it's just sitting in a burn pile waiting to be torched........Has anyone used pressure treated wood to build a box such as this??
Cuda
-
Gnome
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 5122
- Joined: Wed Jul 05, 2006 12:17 am
- Location: Western PA USDA Zone 6A
Cuda,
Make the box just a few inches larger on each side and try to keep it on the shallow side, Do you intend to remove all the garden soil? The first time is always a little tough, I use a hose to help loosen the soil. The tree can sit in a bucket of water while you construct the box. You may need to make another trip to the Monastery. A bag of Turface (or their other similar offering) and a bag of lava rock is good to have on hand anyway.
Make sure to make new, clean cuts on any roots that were severed during digging. You may have to prune some off of the bottom as well. Make sure to clean the roots well, you don't want to dull your new concave cutters. If the roots are really bad you may be looking at layering it in the future, in which case you should probably plant it a little high. Take a look at my Zelkova thread.
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=40359#40359
Regarding moving the box; unless your tree is larger than I am envisioning it the box should be manageable. In your climate you may not even have to move it at all.
Norm
Make the box just a few inches larger on each side and try to keep it on the shallow side, Do you intend to remove all the garden soil? The first time is always a little tough, I use a hose to help loosen the soil. The tree can sit in a bucket of water while you construct the box. You may need to make another trip to the Monastery. A bag of Turface (or their other similar offering) and a bag of lava rock is good to have on hand anyway.
Make sure to make new, clean cuts on any roots that were severed during digging. You may have to prune some off of the bottom as well. Make sure to clean the roots well, you don't want to dull your new concave cutters. If the roots are really bad you may be looking at layering it in the future, in which case you should probably plant it a little high. Take a look at my Zelkova thread.
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=40359#40359
Regarding moving the box; unless your tree is larger than I am envisioning it the box should be manageable. In your climate you may not even have to move it at all.
Norm
