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Watering
Overview
Maples generally to not care to have their feet too wet. There are some species of maples, like the Norway maples, that will tolerate wet conditions and a few other large landscape maples, but Japanese maples prefer good drainage. So, we will limit this discussion to the Japanese maple and if you have questions about other maple species please send us an e-mail. We will be happy to add other information to the FAQ. With the goal of good drainage in mind, you need to adjust your landscape or container watering to meet this requirement. Because there are so many factors involved in watering we will make this discussion short and let you apply the overall idea to your situation. Again, feel free to contact us with further or specific questions.
Containers
Ideally your containers should mostly dry out between watering. In the hottest part of the year you may not be able to risk this and can keep them a bit more moist. Because watering in containers generally means saturating the soil you are always working on a gradient from very wet to dry. Even moisture is best, but most container soils will not lend themselves to this. So, just do your best. What you cannot do is let the container stay saturated as the roots will rot or fail to grow or let the container go completely dry for very long as you risk the plant's health!
We use drip stakes and spray stakes with our potted plants but used to hand water with the hose and watering cans and still do for some plants. Any means will do but if you are using drip emitters of any type it can be helpful to flush the soil by hose watering once or twice a season to try to remove and dissolve any harmful salts in the soil. This would mean watering until water runs freely from the bottom of the container up to 3-5 times the container-holding capacity.
As a general rule, the smaller the container and the warmer the temperature the more frequently you need to water if you are using a fast-draining mix. One gallons might need daily water during the summer with 2-5 gallon plants needing water every couple of days and then larger containers needing water 1-3 times per week. Much depends on the root mass in the pot. The more soil the less water. Even a large root-bound 20 gallon maple could need water every day if there is a predominance of roots in the container and no soil to hold the moisture.
Maples Planted in the Ground
The younger the maple the more frequent the watering needs of the plant. In the ground your soil type will play a key role in how often you need to water. Soil in the landscape, especially when mulched, has a great ability to retain moisture. For many soil types this is an even moisture retention that greatly benefits maples. Your maple cannot be planted so that it is in standing water. For example, a clay soil near or in a lawn would be the worst area for your maple. Maples planted high in mounds or in berms may dry out faster than the ground-level soil and require more watering. Drip irrigation is helpful in this situation.
Generally speaking you can use drip or sprinkler irrigation for the landscape plants. You can also use a garden hose or attach it to a soaker hose if you do not have an irrigation system. With infrequent watering of this type mulching is critical. A newly planted maple probably needs soaking 1-2 times weekly for the first year then once weekly in the second season. After that you can water based on soil conditions and tree health. We have stated elsewhere in this FAQ that maples may be slow to develop a sufficient root system even when planted in the ground and you many need to carefully watch and water the plant for 3-5 years. Any place where other ornamental trees like Dogwoods and Magnolias would thrive is a place maples will do well also. Even moisture and humus rich soil and silt with a nice mulch is ideal. For other situations you will have to apply these concepts and find what works.
Maples are greatly adaptable and can handle a gradient of soil types, moisture levels, pH levels, and exposure. If you have a question about a certain plant please e-mail us.
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