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Japanese Acer getting too big

sherringham2001sherringham2001 Posts: 8
in Problem solving
I have a Japanese Acer that I have planted in a soil plot near a wall. The trunk on the Acer has got really thick and I am worried that its roots may start cracking my wall. A friend said if I bind metal around the truck it will stop it getting thicker and thus the Acer wont get any larger. I am sceptical of this and wondered are there other ways to stop it getting larger?

Posts

  • hogweedhogweed Posts: 4,053
    I think your wall will be fine.
    'Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement' - Helen Keller
  • KT53KT53 Posts: 8,447
    The only way to stop a tree growing is to cut it down.  Trees will continue to grow even with a band around them. 
  • FireFire Posts: 17,307
    I wouldn't worry.
  • HeyJudeHeyJude Posts: 26
    I agree the wall’s probably going to be ok :)
  • treehugger80treehugger80 Posts: 1,923
    you could take some of the lower branches off over winter to raise it up a bit, make it look more like a tree than a large shrub.

    As for the wall, its an Japanese Acer, not a Sycamore, it'll be fine.

    The roots are thin and fine and don't spread much further than the canopy, so if the leaves are barely touching the wall, so are the roots.
  • sherringham2001sherringham2001 Posts: 8
    Thanks for the advice everyone. The main thing I was concerned about was the roots cracking my wall, but it sounds like I have nothing to worry about.
  • Nanny BeachNanny Beach Posts: 8,586
    Acers are shallow rooted
  • dappledshadedappledshade Posts: 1,008
    If it were a Lleylandii, then I'd be worried, but acer have a shallow root system and are quite slow growing. If you do need to ever trim branches at the back, because they're too close to the wall and have no space, then do so in Winter, or the sap might bleed.
    Personally, I like acres unpruned and left to grow naturally whenever possible, as they have a lovely habitat.
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