This really nice Japanese Maple Clump came to my place on Saturday for a little work. Already a great tree, it needed a little work to keep the foliage under control and to help improve ramification.

One of the issues with this tree was the trunk on the far right which is a lot stronger than the other. This was going to need a heavier pruning.

We started with the other trunks to build a better structure. This is something that needs to be kept on top of with a decent tree or thickening of branches on outer reaches will occur and years of work can be ruined. Afterwards we removed quite a bit from the fast growing trunk on the right and then sealed all the cuts to stop dessication.

The reduced strong trunk.

Next step was to remove tree moss that was covering the nebari and starting to climb the tree. This was hiding one of the best features of this tree. Initial work done with a toothbrush and fingers but was finished off with a water jet.

The final change was to do with it’s position in the pot and the direction of movement of the tree. The tree was potted a year ago and sat centrally in the pot. However looking at the movement of the main trunk and the nice flow of those to the left of it, we decided that by potting the tree slightly further to the right and giving more negative space to the left would add more interest to the image. This will require the strong growing tree on the right to be kept under tight control. The tree was taken out of the pot and a little root pruning allowed us to reposition it without the requirement for a full blown repot. The roots were fantastic for a years growth.

The tree before and after work. The plan is for the lower left branches to be extended further to help create a more dynamic image over the next few years. Pot is slightly big for this Winter image but perfect for the development that’s required to take it to the next level.