My first JM Orange Dream

Well I've been looking at japanese maples the last few weeks trying to decide and make a choice of what I want. I'm one of those ppl that too many choices isnt' really a good thing....lol. So obviously since there are sooooooo many beauties out there this became almost impossible.

I live in a rural area and I don't have access to much choice wise which means like many I order online for a great deal of the things I want including my plants. Now I had gathered a small list of maples I thought I had narrowed it down to. I'm very torn between the oranges and the reds which of course means I will have to have atleast one of each. I purchased it thru Pam Leder's ebay stores/auctions. So for less than $20 I now have a very nice (in my opinion) 27" Orange Dream sitting on my window ledge beside me....lol.

First off it's taller than what I was expecting to receive for the price. Some of the lower leaves show some burning on the leaf tips but the upper growth is a lighter green with some hints of orange around the edges. And I think it's very pretty. Appears to be nice and healthy. To be honest I believe in the end the tree was probably the wrong choice for me because it will get taller than I wanted for the spot I wanted to put it in....lol. Which of course again means this will have to go someplace else in the yard and I will have to buy another for the original spot. But again too many choices always leave me confused in the end !!!

I am almost positive that I want a Red Dragon for the yard and that will probably be my next purchase, but I'm getting off subject...lol

What I want to know is do you think I should plant the Orange Dream outside in the ground now or leave it potted and keep it in-doors over the winter ??? I'm in northern Michigan so it will be cold and icey and lots of snow. It also appears as if it will be tasty to the deer too.... How much sun should I strive for when I do place it outside ?? Full, morning or afternoon and evening..... I have read conflicting reports online as to the expected height at maturity which is also leaving me unsure where to plant it in the end.

Of course any recommendations for something pretty that will stay 10 ft or less at maturity and do well in my zone would be appreciated. I have a spot near my new hostas that I think would be complimented by the addition of a Japanese Maple. Morning sun mostly as the spot is shaded thru the afternoon.

~Julie =0)

another pic....

~Julie

Very nice Julie. I'm sort of zone challenged but I don't think that I would keep it in the house. Some of our cold weather gardeners may have some ideas though.

Lovely straight beginning. And it's normal to have leaf burn this time of year. Almost all of mine burn to some extent, even the seedlings.

I'd rather put it outside to be honest. I have looked at it all day and looked at the spot I want to plant it, but I know as soon as I dig the hole somebody will post not to put it outside till spring....lol

~Julie =0)

Well I did it. I planted it outside. Gave it a nice thick layer of bark mulch. It's in a spot where it will get morning sun and be shaded in the late afternoon and evenings. Hopefully it will be happy =0)

~Julie

Well I'm sad to say the deer managed to get to my JM last night and ate it down to about 2" above the snow. We've had bitter cold temps here and the deer are digging my entire yard up trying to get to acorns (I have a lot of oak trees).

It's illegal here to feed the deer or else I'd try to offer them corn to keep them away from my flower beds and fruit trees. I even ran out the other morning around 2 am chasing them off, but they came back shortly after. My new hosta bed won't stand a chance come spring......

~Julie =0/

They will likely be gone by spring.your hostas should be fine...the best defense is a good outside large dog... when I was growing up in central Il. there were no deer NONE they had been hunted out ...they were reintroduced in the 60's and thrived on our corn crop. and limited hunting..thrived is not the proper term they have become a menace. I use to hunt but stopped years ago but firmly believe the deer hunting season should be expanded and hunters allowed to use machine guns and hand granades ;>) I hate the jerks during rutting season you are lucky if you don't hit one at night and all winter they destroy just about everything ... I think the next horror movie should be the revenge of bambi the flesh eating deer...well "don't get me started" this subject boils my blood.... Any one that finds them cute certainly doesn't live around here!!!!! David

Sad to hear about the JM. Did it eat down past the graft? Or is there a chance that the tree will make it? For future reference I'd suggest putting up a wire fence around your precious trees.

Oh, NO We didn't know about the deer. What a sad thing. It's like snails and hostas here. They are just too yummy for words.

My wire structure wasn't strong enough....In retrospect I see it I wasn't really thinking the deer would go for that tree. I had debated covering it with a huge tub but didn't.... bad choice on my part. To be honest I didn't think it would be as tempting as the apple trees which are small as well. I don't think it's down to the graft since there is snow around the base yet. I covered what was left of it with a large pot in hopes that they can not dig it up and eat it to the ground.

I will have to wait till spring to really assess the damage. If it survives I will be surprised !! Probably dig it up and pot it to try and baby it some and see if it will forgive me.

I normally get some activity in the yard during the winter but not this much. I have two outside dogs who cause quite a ruckus not to mention inside dogs who go nuts when the deer are in the yard. Normally the deer take a path AROUND my house and only venture in on occasion. This winter is an exception for them. I just hope it doesn't become a regular stop as the spot they are do the heaviest digging for acorns is my new hosta/heuchera bed.

The herd here has really been cut down. We've had TB issues in this area so the DNR has allowed more killing in recent hunting seasons and there is a law about NO feeding. I hunt and enjoy venison but it's not legal to kill them for tearing up your yard...lol. So far I've been lucky I've only hit one while driving my car and have come close a couple times on my motorcycle. On the motorcycle close is more than enough for me !!!

~Julie