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Gardeners strive to create a beautiful garden plot. Therefore, agricultural enterprises offer a large selection of decorative deciduous trees and shrubs. Maple Manchurian will delight with its attractive appearance from May to October-November.
Leaves of an unusual shape attract the eye with their color, which changes several times a season.
Description of the Manchu maple
In the wild, it is found in the Far East, in northern China and Korea. Manchurian maple (lat. Acer mandshuricum) grows in mixed deciduous forests, along rivers and lakes. The trunk is covered with gray-brown bark.
Due to its high decorativeness, the plant has gained popularity in Europe, America and Asia. Peduncles exude a pleasant delicate aroma, attracting bees. Therefore, trees are planted on bee farms, using them as a honey plant.
The plant is classified as unpretentious. The variety is winter-hardy and moisture-loving. Currently, the tree is predominantly grown in botanical gardens.
Flowering begins in late May, early June
The variety is very decorative. Its complex carved trifoliate leaves change color from spring to autumn and are significantly different from their counterparts. Young shoots of red color bloom against the background of a mature green crown, betray grace and originality to the tree.
In May-June, yellow-green inflorescences begin to appear. From August-September, the foliage changes color from scarlet to burgundy. The Manchurian maple is especially attractive in June, when young pale green leaves have already opened, yellow-green clusters begin to bloom. Then the tree releases young pink-scarlet shoots.
The branches, complex in structure, consist of trifoliate carved leaves. The length of the platform is up to 8 cm, and the width is up to 3 cm. The leaf has a lanceolate ellipse shape.
Inflorescences are collected in clusters, have up to five pieces. The size of green-yellow flowers is 0,5-1 cm. In autumn, fruits appear in the form of a bunch with lionfish. Helicopters reach a length of 3,5 cm.
An unpretentious plant grows both in the shade and in sunny areas.
The Manchurian maple is propagated by cuttings, seeds or grafting. Plant a young plant in autumn or spring. A tender plant needs abundant watering before rooting. The Manchurian maple develops better in a sunny clearing, but it is unpretentious and grows quietly in the shade, but not so quickly. In the sun, the tree has a more decorative color. From yellow-green to pink-burgundy.
With the onset of cold weather, the leaves wither. In autumn, the Manchurian maple puts on a purple dress. Depending on the region of growth, leaf fall begins from September to November. In warm regions, the leaves on the crown last longer. After the branches are exposed, the state of rest for the tree comes. This has been happening since mid-October.
Maple Manchurian is durable, its age can reach 150 years
The plant responds very well to haircuts. If desired, you can create a beautiful conical shape or a sprawling ball.
Seasonal shearing is done after wintering before the start of sap flow. Dried and frozen branches are pruned. At this time, a crown is formed and very long protruding lashes are removed.
Manchurian maple height
An adult plant can reach 20 m. A large spreading tree also grows up to 20 m in diameter. Such tall Manchurian maples are found in the south of Primorsky Krai in the Ussuri taiga.
A tree reaches this size in 50-60 years. Young trees gain growth very slowly, but after 6-10 years they give an annual increase of 30-50 cm.
The growth rate of the Manchurian maple is moderate, up to 30 cm in height and width per year
Winter hardiness of the Manchurian maple
An adult plant is able to withstand severe frosts. However, young maples are less resistant to low temperatures. Experts recommend warming the root circle with humus, leaf litter or sawdust for the first five years.
Advantages and disadvantages
Manchurian maple is characterized by high decorativeness and unpretentiousness, which has become interesting for gardeners. However, like any plant, it has a number of advantages and disadvantages.
Manchurian maple is propagated by cuttings, seeds or grafting.
Pros:
- high decorative effect;
- unpretentiousness;
- grows in both sunny and shady areas;
- moderate growth;
- responsive to pruning, easy to form a crown;
- harmoniously fits into landscape design and is combined with other plants;
- durability 100-150 years;
- high frost resistance;
- wood is used in the manufacture of furniture.
Cons:
- loves moist soil;
- may be subject to spotting;
- in shady areas loses its decorative mono-color;
- young trees require winter warming of the root system.
Features of landing
Maple Manchurian refers to sprawling trees. Therefore, when planting, its further development is taken into account. A distance of 3-5 m is left between the plants. In the first three years, the maple is watered abundantly so that the root system grows, and the tree can independently extract water for itself.
The Manchurian maple loves sunny areas, but can also grow in the shade. When planting, experts advise adding mineral fertilizer containing phosphorus, potassium, nitrogen, etc. to the hole.
Care instructions
An adult plant needs watering at least once a month. In dry summers, the rate is increased by 2-3 times. In spring and autumn, basal top dressing is produced. After wintering, nitrogen-containing preparations are introduced, and before – phosphorus.
Also apply organic fertilizer. These include humus, rotted bird droppings or leaf litter. So that the weeds do not take away minerals from the maple, weeding the near-stem circle is carried out. In the spring, they dig up the area under the crown of the tree so that the roots are saturated with air.
Gardeners recommend mulching the soil in spring so that moisture does not erode and remains in the soil.
Reproduction
The Manchurian maple is undemanding to the soil. Neutral, slightly acidified soil is suitable for landing. Loam is dug up and sand is added to loosen the earth.
Growing Manchurian maple from seeds is not difficult. Lionfish are harvested in autumn. Sand is collected in the container, moistened and the fruits are placed. Seeds are stored until spring.
Before sowing, the fruits are soaked in a solution of hydrogen peroxide.
In April-May, when night temperatures are consistently positive, they begin to sow seeds in prepared and fertilized soil. Planting depth – up to 4 cm. Maintain a distance from each other of at least 50 cm.
The Manchurian maple reproduces well by young layering. An adult plant gives a lot of shoots that need to be dug up. Young trees are planted in autumn or spring. When planting plants, they maintain a distance of up to 1 m. This is the fastest and most reliable method of reproduction.
Maple can be cut. To do this, young shoots with 2-3 leaves are cut from the branch. The cut is made at an angle. A substrate is prepared from peat sand and earth. Moisten the soil and place the cuttings in it, having previously treated it with Kornevin. Maintain a distance between plants of 25 cm.
Cuttings are buried in the ground by 5 cm
Propagation by grafting is used only by experienced gardeners. Young cuttings are cut in early spring. Then the future stock is placed in wet moss and stored until foliage appears. The stock is planted in the ground.
On the handle, a place is chosen where the kidney is visible, and a cut is made with a sharp knife with a thin blade. A similar incision is made on a scion cutting. Two plants are connected by a cut point and tightly rewound with garden film for grafting.
After the procedure, all leaves are removed
Diseases and pests
The Manchurian maple is prone to various types of spotting. Most often, the moth damages the plant. To prevent the invasion of insects, after wintering, preventive treatment of the branches is carried out. Make a solution of copper sulfate, lime and sulfur. The trunk is treated with garden whitewash.
In the rainy season, the plant may be susceptible to rot. This is evidenced by the plaque on the foliage and the brown color of the crown. In such cases, experts advise treating the plant with special preparations, such as Fufanon or Fitoverm. So that the plant does not suffer, after cutting the branches, the place of the cut is treated with garden pitch.
Conclusion
Manchurian maple is valued for its unpretentiousness and decorative effect. Young red shoots against a green tree look very attractive. The plant is especially beautiful in the autumn, when the foliage acquires a purple hue.
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