Best Time to Prune Japanese Maples

[grand]

I have a Japanese maple about 12 feet tall and needed to be pruned. When is the best time to do it? And when I should not do any pruning at all?

[kgilcrest]

The best time to prune Japanese Maples (Acer palmatum) is in mid-winter, while the plants are still in winter dormancy, and before they begin to produce buds and leaf out in the spring. Generally, you should not prune winter deciduous trees while in an active growth phase, and should avoid pruning in the fall as the wounds may not have adequate amount of time to seal before rains begin. For further information, contact the Contra Costa Master Gardeners Help Desk .
Kathy

[grand]

I hired two guys to prune my maple tree in January. Now it looks like a canopy after they pruned it. Something I wanted them to do the most is to thin it out and they did not thin out enough. When is another good time for me to do more thinning?

[smko]

You can do a little thinning but not too much in June. Then wait until January to do more pruning. It is easier for it to heal when the tree is dormant in the winter.

[Stanleys]

Having an interest to develop a way on making the best knowledge on a good designing that will include prune.

[June]

I have a big maple tree. It looks pretty but I just let it growing too big. I had a guy from a nursery to prune my over grown maple. It took him only 20 minutes. I came out and saw it and was so disappointed. He just cut all the lower branches and thin it out. It didn't even look nice. I regretted very much to hire him to do the job. I thought he owns a nursery he should know what to do with a maple and make it look good. Sigh!

[Grahamson]

Removing too much of the tree's growth can stimulate excessive growth or cause unnecessary stress to the Japanese maple. You should also avoid removing more than 1/4 of the foliage on any given branch. Otherwise, the branch may not be able to absorb enough nutrients.