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I have a Japanese maple that has become a green tree rather than a red tree. The tree is planted on the west side of my home and gets a little sun, about an hour or two in the morning and by noon it is in full sun until sundown. The tree does have a little red on the tips of the leaves but looks nothing like our neighbor’s Japanese maple, or like it looked a couple years ago. Also, it looks like a bush and really grew quite a bit this year. Can it be trimmed a little? It has some branches that make it look a bit wild.

The ability of red-leaved varieties of Japanese maples to remain red throughout the growing season is very variable. It is nothing to be concerned about, and you are not doing anything wrong if your tree is otherwise healthy. The variability of coloring may be attributed to the characteristics of the specific variety and its exposure to light conditions. They have the best red color in a spot that is as sunny as the tree can tolerate. This is the point just before the leaves scorch.

Because named varieties don’t come true from seed, they are grafted to a species rootstock to ensure the same coloring and characteristics as the parent plant. Some varieties, like Acer palmatum ‘Atropurpureum,’ are bright red in spring and fall, but only tinged with reddish bronze during the summer months. Some go from fire-engine red to pinkish to green with red veins and petioles; others from purple-red to deep maroon, on to green and back to crimson in the fall. The color varieties are endless! Most likely your Japanese maple is a different variety from your neighbor’s.

Since your tree looks more like a bush, the growth may be coming from the rootstock. Examine your tree to determine where the green branches originate. If there are absolutely no original red leaves appearing on your tree, then it has responded to the dying back of the red-leaved grafted variety by sending up new growth from the base. The rootstock was not a red-leaf variety, as rootstocks are generally selected for their hardiness and vigorous growth, which you have already observed in the bushy green. With the sun and wind exposure of the plant site, and the more typical Michigan winter temperatures, the graft area may have been too stressed. Your choice is to prune what you have or remove it and start over.

Corrective pruning and training can be done at any time of the year, except when the sap is rising in early spring. Cuts should be made just beyond a pair of buds on the twig. Usually, this will then produce two side shoots. When removing a larger limb, like any other pruning, the cut should be made just above the branch collar, the ridge or line where the branch joins an older branch or stem. Major pruning should be done during the dormant season after the leaves have fallen, in October or November, well before the sap starts rising prior to leaf production in the spring. Fine, twiggy growth must be removed, especially from cultivars in the ‘Dissectum’ group. A tree that is too bushy invites insect and disease problems. Pruning is also important to properly display the plant’s structure. Part of the beauty of these maples is the trunk and limb structure and texture, especially during the winter months when the foliage is absent.

I have been noticing a problem with my silver maple for several years now. It is a mature tree with whole branches dying off. Each year another 5 to 10 percent of the tree fails to support new growth. The remaining branches look quite healthy and the tree continues to grow. Recently I’ve begun noticing the same occurrence with other maples in the Clawson area. What’s happening?

Silver maples are fast growers, 10 to 12 feet in 4 to 5 years. Unfortunately, with fast growth comes a weak-wooded tree. This makes it susceptible to wind, ice and snow damage in Michigan. Since your maple is mature and demonstrating slow dieback over a period of 4 to 5 years, it is probably succumbing to maple decline. Your observance of other maples in the Clawson area exhibiting the same symptoms demonstrates the pitfalls of planting a single tree species in an urban environment. Silver maples are often used because they grow fast and give that “mature community” look in a very short time span.

Maple decline is caused predominantly by environmental stress. Trees avoid stress through proper pruning, opening the canopy for air circulation and reducing limb breakage. Silver maples benefit from spring fertilization with a high-nitrogen formulation. Watering well during dry spells, at least 1 inch per week, also decreases stress. Mulch also helps to reduce evaporation but do not let it touch the trunk. Avoid soil compaction under trees by limiting mowing and walking on the surface when it is wet. Two of our worst culprits are riding lawnmowers and weed whips. They can increase compaction and cause trunk and root injury, especially for silver maples, whose roots are exceptionally close to the soil surface.

I use cocoa shells for mulch. Last season, mold developed on all the areas where I put it down. I used cocoa shells again this year and thus far I have not had the mold appear. What causes this mold? Would it be weather or maybe a “bad” batch of cocoa shells?

According to one of our favorite chocolate empires, Hershey’s, waste shell from the extraction of chocolate from the cocoa bean has been used for over 30 years as mulch. Just smelling it makes your mouth water for something chocolate! Cocoa shells slowly decompose and contain about 2.5 percent nitrogen, 1 percent phosphate and 3 percent potash, according to Auburn University Soil Testing Labs. Because it is feather-light, consumers are often advised to water it to keep the shells in place. This means no air circulation as the shells are compressed by the water. Although the shells are clean, they are still an organic product meant to biodegrade into your soil. Excessive rain in spring and summer as well as watering to keep the shells in place can cause a mildew-like mold to appear as the shells naturally decompose. Try to avoid excessive watering and keep air circulating through the shells by lightly top raking. They are meant to disintegrate, amending the soil as they do so. If you are mulching with cocoa shells in breezy areas of your yard, you might consider an alternative mulch that is slightly heavier and not subject to wind dispersal.

How late in the season can I plant newly purchased perennials? How late can perennials be divided and transplanted?

The nice thing about nursery-grown perennials is that they are already “hardened off” when you purchase them. Perennials that have been container-grown and have gone dormant through one winter season in the pot are considered “hardened off” plants; they will be winter hardy. This makes your success rate greater when planting perennials late into the season. You can plant hardened-off plants up until the ground freezes. When planting later in the season, be sure to prepare the soil properly depending on the particular plant’s needs. Also use a root stimulator like Root ’n’ Grow to give the plant a jump start to a healthy root system.

After the foliage of the perennial dies back from frost, cut back the dead leaves to about 3 inches from the ground and cover the entire plant with a light mulch about 3 inches deep. Using pine straw mulch is recommended because it is light enough to allow air circulation at the plant’s crown in order to prevent rotting and at the same time it will insulate the root system for the winter. Winter mulching perennials is an important maintenance step every year, but it is especially important with newly planted perennials.

As general rule, perennial division can be done after the plant is finished flowering for the season. Since division greatly stresses the plant, it should be done early enough to give the plant at least one month in the growing season to reestablish its root system. Dividing on a cool day is also recommended. A first-year perennial should not be divided as it needs at least one growing season to become hardy and healthy enough to handle division.

Find more information here on dividing tulip bulbs.