The Japanese maple - which includes various species, such as Japanese maple - is often cultivated in gardens or pots not only in the Far East, but also in this country. However, the distinctive, mostly small trees with their delicate foliage and impressive autumn colors are not exactly cheap to buy. Fortunately, Japanese maples can be propagated quite easily via cuttings.
How to propagate a Japanese maple?
To propagate a Japanese maple, cut a soft 10-15 cm long shoot in late spring or early summer, remove all but 2-3 leaves, dip the cut surface in rooting powder and plant Cuttings in fine lava granules or potting soil in a plant pot. Keep the substrate slightly moist.
Choose soft cuttings
The optimal time for propagating cuttings is late spring or early summer, when the fresh shoots of the mother tree are not yet mature. Soft, slightly woody branches are best suited to propagating the Japanese maple, which is why the weeks between the end of May and the end of June are considered the ideal period for this project. Proceed as follows:
- Cut off a fresh shoot about 10 to 15 centimeters long.
- This should still be green and soft.
- The cutting surface should be kept as slanted as possible.
- Remove all but a maximum of two or three leaves.
- For varieties with very large leaves, you can also cut the two remaining leaves in half.
- This will prevent excessive evaporation from the leaves.
- Dip the cut surface into a rooting powder (€8.00 on Amazon).
- Place the prepared cuttings in pots with fine lava granules.
- Alternatively, you can also use potting soil.
- Place the plant pots bright and warm, but not in direct sun.
- A cover with foil, for example, ensures higher humidity.
- However, this is not absolutely necessary.
- Keep the substrate slightly moist.
The cuttings will root within about eight weeks and will then be ready for repotting.
Plant out young Japanese maples the following spring
Provided you cut the cuttings early enough and the rooting took place quickly, you can then plant the young plant straight into the garden. However, it should then receive good protection over the winter. However, it is better to overwinter the cutting in a cool, but frost-free place and not plant it out until the following spring. At this point, the plant was able to develop sufficiently strong and strong roots, which can now quickly gain a foothold in the garden soil (or even in a larger pot).
Tip
Cuttings are also ideal to use as a basis for growing a bonsai. The dwarf varieties of Japanese maple are particularly suitable for this.
