Geisha in a Pot

Since we were talking JMs in pots on an earlier thread, I thought I'd share my newest pot purchase. It is Acer palm 'Geisha,' a shrub type JM with salmon pink leaves. It is quite showy and grows very slowly, reputedly around 4 inches a year. I love this little tree, and it cost me $31.95. Who needs annuals in pots, when you can have one of these year after year? Read more about Geisha here: http://www.songsparrow.com/2006new/plantdetails.cfm?ID=290&type=Woody%20Plants&pagetype=plantdetails

More pics follow....

Here's a picture of where the little pot is placed in my garden. In my experience, JMs like to be SLIGHTLY rootbound in their pots. Nonetheless, even though this pot looks very small, the roots take up only about 1/2 of it.

Last shot.

Nice tree. I have been working on my wife to just have small trees in pots instead of annuals. So far it is working pretty well as we only have 2 window boxes in the front and one pot with annuals. I have been buying some smaller maples to save money and use them in pots for around 2 years before putting them in the ground. They need a lot less watering than annuals also.

Yes this is a relatively new cultivar ...Wayside gardens has it at 49.95 last winter for 1 gal size and HEAVILY promoted it ...may have been a bit less during one of their sales but Wayside is high cost but high quality too. I think they put growth at 3-4 ft...a bit higher than sparrow.It looks like a nice cultivar ...yours looks to be in it's second year by the looks of the high graft which is strange for a dwarf or semi dwarf ( having a high graft ...guess they wanted a bigger more salable plant quicker and it is easier to graft high!!!... The graft doesn't look great but with time it should be fine ...I pefer low grafts for that reason ...even if they aren't perfect you don't notice them... David

I might add high grafts are usually done for weeping dissectums ( which your Geisha is NOT)...but i don't like it on them either ...that's why so many have that tell tale mushroom look ...some are grafted as high as 3ft....My feeling is it is nice to have side branches all the way up and if "I" want to cut 'em fine ...but a low graft disectum can look really neat and NOT typical and allows you to train it as you like but definitly harder to find. David

I once bought a $50.00 magnolia from Wayside and it came about 24 inches tall with 5 leaves. LOL Never did that again. I like the plain pot and the pachysandra and (is it?) sedum growing with it.

Pretty little tree. I like the idea of maples instead of annuals. But when it's hot I find that they need to be watered as much as annuals.

Sometimes even in the garden like this small Suminagashi, they can even put the roses to shame. I know that this tree will eventually overshadow the roses and iris and daylilies that are in the garden but I couldn't resist using one more maple. I'll just have to change plans.

yah I have had rip offs at wayside too but their plants generally are nice..but overpriced... I bought a bay tree from them..it was tiny and expensive but it has become one beautiful tree/bush about 12 feet tall ( in ten years) and really full totally differnt than anything around these parts and never winter die back ...it does sucker but snip snip and your good to go ...of course in DOSS country it would be 30 feet tall ;>) David

They might need almost the same water as annuals on hot days, but they never look as tired as annuals after a hot day or at the end of August. Currently our patio table is empty, but last year it was a tiny grafted Ginkgo (a gift from Rich's Foxwillow for my baby - her first tree) and a tiny seedling red maple. That seedling maple shows real potential this year for something cool (color and leaf shape) and hopefully smaller in size as its growth wasn't nearly as much as some of the other maples. That too was a freebie from someone I bought other maples from. What to put on the patio table this year???? Does anybody know of a nursery that sells seedlings from Acer Japonicums (preferably Aconitifoliums) or Shirasawanums like Autumn Moon or Aureum?

well, you have inspired me. I am going to get a JM this weekend for a pot for my front garden.

Ok, I'll not bash Wayside anymore. Here's the Magnolia 15 years later. In February.

Willis, you can buy very small grafted trees for not too much over the net or in the garden center. I think that David has someone on the east coast that he likes.

And mellie - well we'll look forward to seeing your choice.

doss, MANY years ago, I ordered a contorted mulberry from Wayside. The thing came about 2 inches tall. I was PO'd. So I planted the dad gum thing out in the yard where we continued to repeatedly run over it with a lawn mower and/or some varmit ate it down every night. I cursed the thing but finally moved it over near a fence at the edge of the yard. It grew so fast we were blown away! It's now a "problem" tree that we are considering getting rid of. We hack it down by 1/2 every year but it continues to grow right in front of your eyes!

Contorted mulberries should come with a warning label. They never mention how big they get - the photos are always a nice little bush.

Doss, David has already shared his sources with me. For some reason I was buying bigger plants this spring. Even the couple of smaller ones that I bought are too big for the patio table. Maybe after the pocket-book shock of this spring's landscaping wears off, I'll buy a couple of little ones.

Mellieoo, I don't know if you ever look over at Garden Web, but you can check their maple forum and look in the photo section. There is a guy, rkburgess that has a lot of maples in containers and I like his style. He doesn't seem to post much anymore, but you can see some of his pics for ideas. I don't think I have seen picks from David's place yet...

You may wish to look for a maple listed as "bonsai" for a really small one.

Laura

Anything with the name "mulberry " comes up it gives me the heebegeebees!!!!
I have a contorted filbert ..might have gotten it from wayside ...can't remember...also called henry lauders walking stick ( I think)..It was your basic bare root stick ...after about 8 years it is REALLY COOL ...larger than any they advertize in catalogues ( pictured) ...about 7 ft tall 5 feet wide.and gorgeous...it does tend to sucker a bit so you gots to trim the non contorted newbees that sprout around the base...but it is a COOL tree/bush and one you can easily keep smaller if you wish...After I bought it I thought I'd been ripped off and it would take a century to look like it was pictured and it was just another hyped plant.... but I was wrong ...really cool!!!....

as far as my pictures i do need to post some ...one problem is my dang dog "Darwin" he is a plant eater/ destoyer...I guess he thinks he's doing his part in natural selection ;>)... so everything I plant of value is chicken wired up with rebar so it ain't a pretty site ...he is getting better and I hope next spring to free all of my jm's so i can photograph them in their enviorns without it looking like they are prisoners ;>)David

Well, I'm just glad that you are protecting your trees from your Darwin. I hope that he outgrows his 'I have to eat everything' stage pretty quickly. It would be fun to see your trees.

I posted this back in April, but it is a lovely cultivar. My photo is closer up of the Geisha leaves. Taken at a local nursery around April 22nd 2006.

Laura

Laura - It must be late for you. Where's the photo? :-)

irmaly, that is beautiful. what a great idea! i'm definitely going to try it. how long can you keep it in that size pot? i don't have any JM but have always wanted to try one. do recommend a dealer/species for a newbie? thanks :o))

Laura....I agree with Doss what a lovely photo ...;>0000 David

Darwin is a character he has some growing up to do don't ya think ...well maybe he will never "grow up "...David

What kind of dog is Darwin? Looks like he's going to be a 'character' for a very long time.

oops!

ashleykelly and all, thanks. I had a closeup shot of the leaves on this little tree, but now I can't find the shot.

As for how long I leave trees in pots, it really depends on fast they grow and/or my general inclination. LOL! Currently I have a butterfly, very small, in a pot, planted last year. Someone sold it to me for $15. I have an orange dream in a pot. It is a pretty good size (maybe 3 feet or better?) I also have an Aconitifolium (Dancing Peacock) in a pot. I have had it in this pot for going on 5 years or so and haven't planted it because I just LOVE it in the pot and I have a special spot for it in the garden. (I am going to have to probably repot this tree this fall, but I plan to keep it in its pot.) Counting the Geisha, that's only 4 I have in pots this year, but I am looking for more! I had my Aureum in a pot for a few years and then planted it this year when I re-did an area.

I keep my eyes open for small trees with a decent graft. If there's no graft, I don't buy.

I'm going to check out garden web.

David, I have two contorted filberts. This year, we REALLY limbed up our larger one and I LOVE THE LOOK! I'll try to get a pic of it (and the other little trees in pots) later. For now, here are my two garden associates, Rosie on the left, and Annie on the right.

myersphcf asked for recommendations of trees and/or sources. I would love to hear where some of your sources are, especially for the smaller trees as I am always on the lookout. I have mostly bought locally from two gals who are friends of mine and who have a wholesale nursery. They don't specialize in JMs, but they keep an eye out. If something good comes along, they usually buy one for themselves and one for me. I have also bought from We-Du Nurseries in Marion, NC, now under new management and called Meadowbrook Nursery. They are close to home, but they no longer propagate any JMs. I have had real success with Eastwoods Nurseries in Washington, VA. I have ordered through the mail several times with them and have always been VERY pleased. They are good for making recommendations, and the trees I have gotton from them are always excellent. Their site is here: http://www.japanesemaples.com/

Where are your sources?

sorry, that was ashleykelly, not David, who asked for sources.... Not enough coffee yet this morning!

Oh, I bought the Geisha at Elkwood Crossing Nursery in Elkwood, VA on the way back home from a trip to Baltimore. They have some very different Plant Material and, IMO, are quite expensive. But there was this one little Geisha sitting there on the ground, properly tagged and in good shape, for $32. You just never know, huh? They have a website, but it is currently under construction: http://www.elkwoodcrossing.com/

Doss... Darwin is part chow and we think part husky and shepard... he slips his collor like huskies do ...and he has that shepard look and spotted tounge like a chow ...he is getting better but I still have to put the hose outside the fenced back yard after use cause he chews it in nice 3 ft. lengths and leaves it arouind the yard to tawnt me...fortunatly we have had descent rain fall this spring ...what a hassel winding up 100 feet of hose and moving it outside the fence after a 15 minute use .... ;>( David

You might want to try herters...I've had good luck with John Herter ...skip the autions and go to his web site ...one year grafts are 20$ plus 6$ shipping ...pretty cheap . His grafts are most always really nice ( better tahn most others) ... his stuff is a bit small but nice...he ships with most dirt removed in plastic bag but I have had 100% success on what I have gotten from his place to mine two days ...ship monday get wed...He is sometimes busy and his email responces very from excellent to so so and you may have to wait a bit to get it shipped whereas in early spring it is shipped wi/in two days of pay palling him...this time if year can be dicey for him cause he's so busy. He is very business like so don't expect "Della" treatment but I have found him to be a good source for a variety of JM's ...and if it's not listed on his web site email him he may have it ...he is propagating a bunch of stuff...especially if you are looking for a one year graft...he's started alot of new ones of late ...David

http://www.japanesemaple.net/japanesemaple.htm

I'd probably be amiss if I didn't mention one of our contributors Dave of Daves Nursery...I have had NO experience with him but his participation on this site has been greatly appreciated and it most likely would be worth an email or call to see what he has especially if you are in the east or mid west...he seems like a good guy...same goes for doss's buddy nurseryman...if you live on the west coast but I think he does mostly landscape size stuff and I'm not sure how much mail order...the point is these guys participate here but can't ballyhoo their stuff without BIG DAVE booting them ...so I think it would be good to check 'em out...David

I kept a tree in a pot for 20 years and finally moved it into the ground. Every year it got terrible leaf burn but every year it came back.

I don't know if Nurserydude's Carlmont nursery does mail order. They have trees from tiny to huge. You can always ask. His name is Gary if you decide to call.
http://www.carlmontnursery.com/

Sorry that your doggie is such a chewer. That can be really hard I know. He's a cute chewer though. I picked my dogs so that they wouldn't bother my garden. My black and tan dug a little when she was a puppy but now she runs between the plants and is pretty careful. My red dog is a grand dame and never gets into any trouble.