bloodgood maple help

i was lucky to get this maple from people on my street the top growth was dead
but new grow starting down low,
it has lots of fine root growth as well.
now should i reduce any of the top growth?
and what would make the best style?

Hello Ricky. Do you know why the top died? I'm not sure bloodgood is a good candidate for bonsai, as it has large leaves and long internodes. I think you should concentrate on getting the tree fighting fit before making any cuts.

Top growth dieback is often a result of verticillium wilt. Sometimes the tree compartmentalises the diease and the lower part survives. Sometimes the disease lingers and later kills the whole tree. If yours shows any sign of dying back from the tips of branches, it would be wisest to burn the entire tree.

I hope it survives and thrives for you.

As Will says it isn't the best candidate for bonsai. Smaller leaved varieties are preferred.

But if you want a nice garden feature thy grow ell and very quickly. We put a small one in about six years ago and it is quite substantial now. I'll get a picture of it later.

Mike

will baddeley wrote:Hello Ricky. Do you know why the top died? I'm not sure bloodgood is a good candidate for bonsai, as it has large leaves and long internodes. I think you should concentrate on getting the tree fighting fit before making any cuts.

i was wrong about it being a bloodgood the lady had the tag to it and its a acer palmatum emperor one.
is that a better tree for bonsai then?

Red Emperor is an "improved" variety of Bloodgood, so basically no better. You could grow it as a large bonsai and defoliate it when it is growing strongly, to get a smaller crop of new leaves.

Kev Bailey wrote:Red Emperor is an "improved" variety of Bloodgood, so basically no better. You could grow it as a large bonsai and defoliate it when it is growing strongly, to get a smaller crop of new leaves.

haha well thats more hope for me then, i was so excited to get the tree hated to hear that it wouldn't make a good bonsai, i got the tag from the tree and was priced at $229.00. thanks for all your help!