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Acer butterfly not doing so well

cammy0102cammy0102 Posts: 49
edited October 2022 in Problem solving
Hello ladies and gentlemen,
Hoping you would be able to tell what's wrong our Acer butterfly plant. We've had this in a pot for a couple of years and it was looking reasonably healthy until mid this year. Since then it's been looking rather unhappy. We planted it in the ground hoping that it would do better. I added normal compost and also ericaceous compost when planting it as I've read that Acers like slightly acidic soil.

It's been about 3 months and it hasn't shown any sign of improvement. In fact it's looking slightly worse. It hasns't grown at all. See the pictures below:




Though it looks like it's suffering from Verticillium Wilt, I don't believe it is as the branches are not brown/black/dead. 

What could it be? Was it stressed when we had that heat wave? Is there anything we can do? Or should we just leave it? Maybe it just needs time to recover? Perhaps it will start growing in Spring next year and will be happier?

Thanks very much.

Posts

  • Pete.8Pete.8 Posts: 11,340
    It's probably just settling in to its new home and hopefully concentrating on growing a strong root system.
    I can't see any obvious sign of VW either.
    Maybe tidy it up a bit in winter if you wish and see how it looks in the spring.

    Billericay - Essex

    Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
    Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
  • barry islandbarry island Posts: 1,847
    I have a couple of Japanese Acer in pots and find it hard to keep them looking pristine for the whole growing season, last year one of them got scorched by the sun and the leaves went crispy so this year I moved it into shade, determined to prevent them from drying out in the hot weather I watered them every day, the leaves on the one in the shade still curled and went brown until I realised that I was over watering, the other plant is more resilient as long as I watch out for aphid attack as the leaves are appearing in spring. The good thing is that every year they come back with a fresh new start its just keeping them looking good that's the challenge.
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    I'd agree with @Pete.8. It's newly planted and will now need some time to get established again. A lot of areas had very dry conditions for along time, so planting in summer won't really have helped, and strong sun fries the foliage very readily.
    The majority of them need some shade to do their best, although the red varieties get their best colour when they have some sun. The severity of that sun, and the amount however, is the key factor when siting them. Shade from other trees/shrubs - ie a more woodland setting is ideal if possible. 
    It should be easier for it now that it's well into autumn.  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • Arthur1Arthur1 Posts: 542
    If it has only been in the ground for 3 months, that is nothing. Most of the roots will still be in the root ball, it will struggle to access enough water. It will be several years before it properly 'gets its roots down' and can be considered established.
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