Maple from Seed

[Watto]

This Acer campestre has a few common names (field maple, english maple, hedge maple) and was grown from seed I collected from a tree growing in a street in Goulburn. At the time I thought it was a good idea to try a bonsai from seed I collected myself.
I took the seeds home, about 35 to 40, planted them in the vegie patch and waited. In the spring about 80% germinated and I thought how clever I was. However, my darling wife being helpful decided to weed the vegie patch and told me how strange it was that all the weeds were in a straight line.
Anyway that was about 10 or 12 years ago and one did survive and this is how it looks now. Slackness prevented me taking a progressive photo album but I can tell you that after it was grown in the ground for a few years it was potted into a plastic pot and a few years later I did an "in pot layer" to improve the nabari. For the last couple of years it has been defoliated every year, sometimes twice a year.
I think its just starting to take some reasonable shape.

[Meagi]

Wow watto
That is and will be an even more beautiful tree in the years to come
Love to see the autumn color when the time is right

Do they go red as well in autumn ?

[Watto]

Meagi - generally they are yellow in Autumn, but it is starting to get some better ramification and looks OK naked. Lots more work needed, but it has started.

[Boics]

Nice one.

I likee too and think you've a great little pot and tree match.
I look forward to the Autumn display - please post an update.

Cheers,

P.S. love the story of the weeds in a row!

[GavinG]

Lovely shapely tree, and the leaves seem to have reduced very well.

Gavin

[lackhand]

Nice little tree Watto, I've always been interested in growing from seed. I started 30 Japanese maples about that long ago, and somebody stole them from off the front porch of my apartment. That resulted in a long break from growing anything, but I'm back now. Interesting to see how things would be looking about now if I still had them. So don't feel bad about only having one still around!

Look forward to watching this grow, so keep updating.

[Watto]

Gavin - the first crop of leaves are quite large but secondary and tertiary branching increases the number of leaves and I think this has the added benifit of reducing leaf size. That, with defoliation has an inpact over time.
I should have used the standard measuring device (stubbie) so people would have an appreciation of the size. Promise I will do that when I take a photo of the Autumn colour.

[bodhidharma]

Great story Watto. I have found they have difficulty developing good ramification here and are very unpredictable in there growth habits. We get yellow foliage with green tints. Lovely little tree and maybe i should not have flogged all mine off

[Steven]

Nice tree with a great story Watto.
It's hard to tell the size from the photo. Can you let me know?
I think it deserves a better pot too

Regards,
Steven

[Watto]

Steven - I have a Japanese pot that I am planning to pot it into this year, probably August. As promised I will take a photo with a size comparison when in its Autumn colour.

[Watto]

I managed to find a photo of the result of the in pot air layer. The photo was taken in August 2011 but I will take another photo this week to show how it is going now - this time with a size comparison. But just for now, the black turntable is 40cm across.

[woody]

Hi Watto,
very nice mate, nice fat trunk. lovely shape!!

Your story reminded me of the golfer who had a bad day on the course, went home, kissed the dog, kicked the wife .

I always thought defoliating should have a fallow season. One year on, one off. Which encourages the leaves to remain small in the later years Otherwise the leaves would eventually go big again. Unless thats a load of chook poo!!
Woody