A ball maple, also called ball maple, is a suitable tree for the garden. By not pruning the tree, the crown will take on a round and wide shape. Many people prefer a compact spherical maple, which means that it requires annual maintenance. But how do you get your spherical maple so beautifully round and compact? In addition, when pruning the ball maple, you must make sure that you prune the tree at the right time. If you prune at the wrong time, there is a chance that the tree will bleed to death.
What is a spherical maple?
The bole maple, also called Acer platanoides ?? Globosum ?? is known for its flat convex crown. The tree grows to about six meters in height and can easily be planted in a small garden. The leaves of the tree have a bright green color and turn yellow in autumn. Later in the fall the tree loses its leaves, after which it gets new leaves in the fall.
Pitch
The ball maple is a tree that grows in a sunny spot as well as in the shade. The tree prefers to grow in humus-rich soil and likes to have enough space to develop the crown. The tree will grow less well in a location that is very wet.
Pruning the bole maple
It is not necessarily necessary to prune the ball maple. When the crown of the tree is allowed to develop in height and width, you can let the tree take its course. In gardens people often want to keep the tree compact and round. This can be done by pruning the tree annually. It is important that you do not prune the tree during frost or in the months of December to March. When you prune the bole maple during this period, the sap flow starts. Sap drips from the pruning wounds, which can cause the tree to bleed to death. You may prune the coniferous maple outside this time. The best time is to do this early in the spring after frost. As a result, the tree does not suffer any possible frost damage.
You can prune the tree in two different ways. With a topiary you can prune the tree around. Another option is to pollard the tree.
Topiary
If the branches are not too thick, you can prune the maple tree with a hedge trimmer. By using stairs or a ladder, you can also prune the top of the ball maple. For a nice round bulb, it is advisable to regularly check from a distance whether you cut the ball maple well round. When you prune with a hedge trimmer, the branches sometimes want to get caught in the ball maple. When cleaning up, be sure to remove the loose branches from the tree as well. If you don’t, you will notice branches with brown leaves hanging from the tree after a few days.
Pruning a boll maple with pruning shears takes a bit longer than a hedge trimmer. The advantage is that you can prune thicker branches with this. By grasping the branches and then cutting them off, you ensure that no branches get caught in the ball maple.
If you want the ball maple nicely round, you can hold a broomstick horizontally against the trunk, for example. Then, for example, draw a line on the broomstick at a distance of 1 meter. By cutting the branches on the bottom of the bulb at this distance and moving broomstick around the circumference of the trunk, make sure that the circumference of the bottom of the bulb is 1 meter everywhere. This way you will ensure that the spherical shape is even.
Buns
A spherical maple is also sometimes pollinated. This is done in the same way as a bulb catalpa or bulb acacia. It is advisable to do this early in the spring, after no more frost is expected. With pruning shears you can cut the branches 10 centimeters above the bun.
Take birds into account
Bole thorns are often used by birds as a nesting place, especially pigeons like to nest in the bole thorn. When there is an inhabited nest in the tree, the tree may not be pruned. You can disturb the nesting place of the birds by pruning the tree. To be able to prune the tree, it is best to wait until the nest in the tree is no longer inhabited.
Enlist a gardener or tree worker
If you prefer to leave the pruning of the bole maple to an expert, you can call in a gardener or a treeworker. An expert knows how best to prune the tree and whether the time at which you want the tree pruned is the right one. In consultation, the gardener or tree worker can also remove the pruning waste for you.