Question
QUESTION: Hello  
I have a few questions about my Tamukeyama Japanese Maple. Thee tree looked healthy when I bought it 6-7 months ago. I had planted it into the ground when it the leaves started to dry out. I asked a plant expert in Lowes and she said that the tree may be getting too much light (which it was) and suggested that I replant the tree at a shady spot.I repotted the tree in a 15-gallon pot and have kept it in shade ever since. IT gets morning sun, but that's all. I water the tree once a week soaking wet. The leaves start to dry out at the tip and then spread to the whole leaf which then falls off. New leaves have sprouted out, but then they dry off too withina week or so. Can you please suggest a remedy? I have planted it using Miracle Gro tree and shrub soil (I think). Thank you for your time.
Ananth

ANSWER: Ananth,
If Japanese Maples dry out they are prone to leaf scorch, which as you describe starts from the tips and edges of the leaves.  Perhaps once a week watering wasn't enough.  The other thing that can cause this is fertilizer burn. Usually the time-release fertilizer in your potting soil wouldn't be enough to cause this, but if any other fertilizer was given it might have been too much.  Morning sun is perfect for these plants so I think that this is not the problem.  If your temperatures were high the plant may have been drying out.  Also, if some of the roots were cut when you dug it up and repotted it, that would also contribute to leaf scorch.

At this point if I were you I'd plant it in the ground where it will get AM sun and afternoon shade. If the nights are cool where you are, water deeply (soaker hose or sprinkler not by hand) once a week. If it's still above 75 at night water twice a week until it cools.  No fertilizer.  

These trees usually survive both leaf scorch and fertilizer burn.

I hope this helps!
C.L.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you very much for your prompt response. I do not have a spot around my house that wiil have morning sun and afternoon shade for me to replant the tree into the ground (its a north-facing lot). Is it detrimental to/critical for the tree if it remains in a pot? Also, I added no other fertilizer other than what may have come from the soil.
Once again thank you.
Ananth

Answer
Ananth,
You don't say where you are, but in general Japanese Maples do overwinter well in large pots - the key is that you need to be about two zones warmer than the hardiness of the tree if you want to leave it outside. This maple is hardy in zone 5 I believe, so that means if you want to have it in a container unprotected you need to be in a zone 7 (low of 0 to 10 degrees).  This is because pot temperatures get about twenty degrees colder than ground temperatures. If you are in a zone 6 (low of -10 to 0) you could pull the pot into an unheated shed or garage during the coldest part of the winter.

Plants can stay in pots for many years - just be sure to add some compost on the top of the pot every year and use an organic fertilizer in the future.  

If you didn't add any fertilizer it's probably not fertilizer burn but must be water stress, with the added problem of moving the plant.  My guess is that the tree will be fine next season.

all the best,
C.L.