Pruning Japanese maples properly accentuates the form and brilliant autumn color of these statement trees.
Bryan E. McCay
Japanese maples have a multitude of attributes that make them perfect trees for shady landscapes.
Some varieties boast eye-catching spring color, while others are bedecked with a riot of hues in fall.
Credit:Bryan E. McCay
Leaf shape and texture range fromtraditional maple shapesto finely cut and lacey leaves.
All their attributes are amplified with good pruning techniques.
Japanese maples have a growth pattern that gives an open, airy appearance.
Credit: Adam Albright
They dont have a rounded outline like their cousins,red maples.
Instead, their outline can best be described as natural but balanced.
Prune for the long game.
Credit:Bryan E. McCay
Japanese maples grow slowly, often putting on less than 12 inches of growth a year.
Use the right tools.
A pair of sharp garden pruners andmedium-size loppersare usually all that is required to prune a Japanese maple.
This slow-growing tree typically has small branches that are easily removed without having to break out a saw.
If you better remove a large branch, a small handsaw will get the job done.
Whatever punch in of pruner you employ,be sure it is sharp.
Dull pruners make rough cuts that heal slowly, creating entry points forpests and diseases.
Prune in late winter.
It is easiest to clearly see the form of a Japanese maple when the branches are leafless.
Dont bypass taking a long look at your tree from the bottom up and the inside out.
Thoughtfully stepping back and examining the tree before wielding your pruners will help you make smarter pruning cuts.
Prune away dead, diseased, and broken branches immediately, cutting them back to the nearest live branch.
Mind the branch collar.
When removing a branch, dont cut into the branch collar.
Instead, remove the branch to the outer edge of this area.
The branch collar works to quickly seal the pruning wound, preventing pests and diseases from entering the tree.
Japanese maples are most eye-pleasing when they are pruned so that individual branches create visible layers.
The key to crafting the visible layers is the space between the branches.
Create space between branch layers by removing branches that are growing too vertically or too horizontally.
Remove no more than 30 percent of the tree.
Clip away twiggy growth along the main trunk, or trunks if the Japanese maple is a multi-stem tree.
Removing this twiggy growth reveals the trunk, helping highlight the layered structure of the branches above.
When in doubt, dont cut.
Japanese maplesare slow-growing trees.
It takes them a few years to recover from apruning job gone wrong.
Put down the pruners and reexamine the tree with a fresh perspective in a few days if necessary.
