Not too late to shade Japanese maple trunk from winter sun
enlarge this imageWe cut one limb from an Alaska falsecypress (Chamecyparis nootkatensis) and strapped it vertically to the south side of the maple trunk. At the arrow, you can see the base of the falsecypress.
Now the falsecypress' evergreen branches can shade the maple's thin barked, vulnerable area. In addition, we've tied more clippings of the falsecypress to the base of the maple trunk to shade it and help trap ground warmth.
It's not too late to protect a plant for winter.
Some have a rose or Rhododendron that needs help.
We protected the trunk base of a Japanese maple from the cold to
come because the tree's in the wide open. We heaped evergreen
boughs to shade and muffle the lowest portion of the tree's trunk,
so prone to freezing on the part facing south or west.
Jump
here to see other non-conventional but effective ways to
protect a Japanese maple from cold sun, and why it's necessary to
help this kind of tree when it's planted in the open.