Low growing Japanese Maple and a sucker limb!?

Question

Theres a sucker (no roots) on a very established J. Maple out front here at my work place, could it actually establish roots with root hormone if cut from the mother tree, and how long will it take to establish itself and where should I keep it while this process is taking place?

Should it be in a cup of water or dirt till i can get home to put the hormone on it?

It's attached to the main trunk of the tree/shrub! No roots!

Answer 1

Before going to the effort of cutting and rooting that sucker, you may want to determine whether or not the parent plant is grafted. If it's a grafted plant, the sucker is coming from the rootstock, and the rootstock will not be the same variety as the rest of the tree. That sucker may be just a plain old green Japanese Maple. Still nice, but not the plant you are hoping for. Look for a grafting scar on the parent tree.

In any event, what you want for propagating this time of year is the new, softwood of the parent tree. Once the tree puts on 6-8" of new growth, clip off that new growth, dip the cut end in rooting hormone and stick it in sand. Keep it in a humid environment and with good timing and a bit of luck, it will root in a few weeks.

Answer 2

If you really like the tree take a cutting and propagate using rooting hormone etc. I wouldn't take this sucker as it has no advantage over normal cuttings and is probably a sucker from the rootstock the maple is grafted onto. Most J. maples are grafted on to a more vigorous root stock. This root stock is not the same variety as the top. (probably a robust green variety). You would then not end up with the variety on top which you are really after.

Answer 3

It depends on how vigorous the sucker is. I have not yet had success with sprouting root suckers as a cutting. If the root sucker is a distance from the tree, you may have some success digging up that section of root and cutting off the section of root with the sucker attached, and pot right away with a dose of Liquid Vitamin B1 (You can find it at garden centers with the fertilizers), and try to keep as much of the root with as much soil attached as you can.
If you are serious about making the cutting, try to get as many root suckers as you can, and root them all at the same time. (That way you'll have at least one out of so many to root.) I recommend a liquid root hormone over the dry powder, as it is absorbed faster than the powder. A mix of perlite with peat moss is a good starter media. And whatever you do, do not let the cutting dry out! Keep it protected and mist it regularly, air it only if you notice fungus growing on it. You might have success if you have a southeast facing windowsill to allow for moderate light.

Answer 4

Japanese Maple Rootstock