Reducing variegated Maple

[Al Cormack]

Evening all,

I've been asked to lightly reduce and reshape a variegated maple.

 

In all my years as a tree surgeon, I've not reduced one of these.

My worry is that the ensuing re-growth would be the more dominant reverted back to green branches.

 

Anyone got any experience of reducing one, and seeing what happens?

 

Cheers

Al

 

 

 

Tree Surgeon - Woking | Cormack Tree Care Ltd

[Pinkfoot]

If it is a Drummondii , Acer Platanoides , it will be fine.

 

sent from my phone but never in work time.

[Al Cormack]

If it is a Drummondii , Acer Platanoides , it will be fine.

 

sent from my phone but never in work time.

 

 

Yes, it is a Drummondii. I've thinned it in the past and removed any reverted growth from within the crown, but not reduced it.

 

Cheers

 

 

http://www.cormacktreecare.co.uk

[Farmer Tom]

I left two Drummondii in pots in my yard, they rooted down through the tarmac and grew to about twenty feet, started disturbing drains. The canopy promoted moss growth in the yard, so I decided to take them out.

I 'reduced' them down to two feet and they came back the following year, one variegated, one reverted. This year, both totally reverted. Coming right out this winter.

 

Burn well though....

Edited May 28, 2017 by Farmer Tom

[Rich Rule]

I am no expert in these matter but from previous observations with any tree the more you remove the more vigorous the regrowth partly due to the stresses the tree endures.

 

With that in mind a sympathetic reduction may not place the tree under too much stress, and not have a massive burst of regrowth. Possibly staying variegated and keeping the rooting stock dormant.

 

It would be interesting to gets someone else with an expert opinion.

[scotspine1]

Worked on many drummondii (large and small) over the years and other variegated trees/shrubs that often suffer from revertion (cut leaf Beech, various variegated shrubs, jap maples)

 

Thr variegated leaves tend to have less chlorophyll so are photosynthetically less efficient than viridescent leaves so the reversion could be a strategy for survival in times of stress or temporary poor growing conditions (drought, bad pruning, storm danger etc) The tree may also be producing more green leaves as an attempt to compensate for lack of sunlight. It's also possible that changes in day/night temperature are affecting leaf pigmentation, which may again result in temporary reversion to green. Green re-growth is generally more vigorous than variegated areas, pruning the green re-growth out can obviously help to retain the variegation. But you need to viewing the tree or shrub every year to stay on top of it.

 

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[Goaty]

I am no expert in these matter but from previous observations with any tree the more you remove the more vigorous the regrowth partly due to the stresses the tree endures.

 

With that in mind a sympathetic reduction may not place the tree under too much stress, and not have a massive burst of regrowth. Possibly staying variegated and keeping the rooting stock dormant.

 

It would be interesting to gets someone else with an expert opinion.

 

 

As far as I know, all Drummondii are budded or grafted. Depending on the graft union height, above the union it will resprout drummondii and below will only produce whatever the seedling rootstock was. This will not necessarily be plain green.

 

 

As for reducing go ahead, only the usual maple concerns, excessive bleeding and wounds that may get fungal attack would be of concern to me.

Vigourous regrowth could also happen.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Arbtalk

[scotspine1]

As far as I know, all Drummondii are budded or grafted. Depending on the graft union height, above the union it will resprout drummondii and below will only produce whatever the seedling rootstock was. This will not necessarily be plain green.

 

I can think of two Drumondii I know of that have reverted entirely to green above the graft.

 

In fact I can get a pic of a small one in the next few days which was variegated last year, all green now.

 

 

.

[Goaty]

Yes true. I wasn't including reversion. This happens in the field when they are nursery grown. It's frustrating to see a row of identical trees except for the reversion rebels. It will happen for a reason and it occurs randomly. You can take adjacent buds from bud wood and get one of each.

 

I was also trying to clarify a point earlier in the thread, just in case folk didn't realise these are propagated this way

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Arbtalk

Edited May 28, 2017 by Goaty

[Al Cormack]

Thanks for all the replies. It is going to be a light reduction anyway, so sounds like.it should be ok.

 

I'll let you know what happens!

 

Cheers

Al.

 

 

http://www.cormacktreecare.co.uk