AusBonsai

Gday,

I have a quick question in relation to a 5 foot J. Maple I have in grow pot at the moment. I am obviously wanting to chop the trunk right back and am wondering when the best time to do this is? Is now not a good time, i.e. being dormant will it suffer from die back etc.

Also can someone enlighten me on what is meant by the term/s 'bare wood' and 'bare rooted' and 'old wood'.

Thanks again, and hope everyone in Melbourne is enjoying this drenching rain!

firstly bare rooted is when the roots are taken out of their soil/ground, hence being bare, and for chopping your j maple right back, it is safer to leave the chopping untill its warmer, like spring so then the tree will be able to handle it, they do not grow much in winter.
and old wood is just old gnarly bark/wood on a tree.
hope this helps, cheers simo

Bare wood is a length of branch that has no foliage along it. Some trees will shoot back on bare wood, some won't.

I'd still be happy to cut back a Japanese maple now. The worst time in my experience is spring when the buds are starting to open - they tend to 'bleed' ( weep sap from the cut) profusely and can die back or die completely. I find bare rooting a tree and trimming the roots stops wounds weeping almost instantly.

Bare root means to take the tree out of the soil and remove most/ all of the soil mix.
Bare wood/ old wood is stem that has no leaves. As mentioned some trees eg maples and elms will shoot new buds from old wood when pruned while pines rarely produce buds on bare wood and have to be cut back a bit at a time.

I'd also vote for the chop now, or perhaps in early August. What I was taught, right or wrong, was that if you wait until the buds start to swell in spring, your tree has already expended in crating those bud swells a fair bit of energy stored since autumn ....leaving less energy to create buds and small branchlings after the hard prune. The tree is dormant ..... nothing is currently producing chlorophyl and energy via photosynthesis. (Note this radical chop is for deciduous only.) I'd also seal the chopped stub.... if you don't have cutpaste, use PVC glue with a bit of protein mixed in (soy or egg white).

Thank for the advice everyone,

I am still a bit confused though with differing posts. Some say to chop back hard now in winter and others suggest to wait till its warmer? Can anyone else explain this?

Some say to chop back hard now in winter and others suggest to wait till its warmer? Can anyone else explain this?

Read the post by shibui, he explains the reason for repotting now. Generally speaking: when you want to know which advice to trust, it helps to have some knowledge of the members posting here. Failing that, the number of years they have worked on bonsai gives an indication of their experience. FYI shibui is a bonsai nurseryman with a great deal of experience, who lives in an area where Japanese maples thrive, so I'd certainly listen to him. Note: even here in cold Canberra, I wouldn't delay a major trunk chop for very long, as the sap starts to rise before the buds begin to swell and a tree that appears to be entirely dormant can bleed quite badly. Don't forget to seal the cut properly.

Lisa

shibui wrote:I'd still be happy to cut back a Japanese maple now. The worst time in my experience is spring when the buds are starting to open - they tend to 'bleed' ( weep sap from the cut) profusely and can die back or die completely. I find bare rooting a tree and trimming the roots stops wounds weeping almost instantly.

I agree with Shibui, either now before bud swell or wait till late spring after the buds have opened. When I started bonsai, I killed many j.maples from cutting "as the buds are swelling". The tree hasn't been root pruned recently has it?

I would definitely recommend Shibui's advice, as Lisa said, he is a nursery man and has some great maples! check out his posts viewtopic.php?f=129&t=4944&p=56470&