A Gardeners Forum Forums Members History Forum Life 2005 Novice gardener

Hello everyone!

I googled for some info on pruning my Japanese Maple and found you guys! Thank goodness, because I will need help in planning my yard! We just moved from MA to FL and have a half acre of land. The back yard is completely barron except for the weeds. The front is all centipede grass with the exception of two small Japanese Maple trees that I got for Mother's Day. One of them is doing very well, but the other has one tall, thick shoot that looks silly. There is some new growth on the other small branches, but I am afraid the tree is putting all of it's energy into the wrong place. I was thinking of cutting it off and trying to root it, but I don't want to kill my $100 tree in the process. HELP!! Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

I think you should try cutting the parts that you think you would change off and root them, just in case something weird happens you'll have backup and if there is no branch for the tree to put it's energy in, it's gonna do something different right?
~Celena

That's exactly what I was thinking! However, I don't want the "something different" to be dying. My kids would be so sad if the tree didn't make it. On the other hand, I might get another tree out of the deal, right? The weather is very dark and overcast today, so it is a good day to go outside and do some yardwork. Thank you for your input and wish me luck!