Acer with crispy leaves

[partyprop]

The internet says it's drying out because it's not being watered enough or the roots are water logging but how can I know which is the issue? Half the leaves are lovely and green and half crispy. I've moved it to a less sunny spot and it seems happier.

Watching with interest. Mine is the same

The issue is more complicated than that. You can have a tree which is well-watered and still have issues with the leaves. Without going into technicalities, the trees can only cope with replenishing the water at the leaves up to a certain speed.

If the water is evaporating from the leaves faster than the tree can replace it, then the leaves suffer.

If the roots are permanently soggy they will rot, and cannot supply the tree with water.

If the roots get too dry, then the fine feeder roots start to die off and cannot supply the tree with water.

At this time of year, acers in pots need to be kept well watered and ideally in a shady spot out of the wind. Wind can dry leaves faster than the sun. By the way, as long as the roots and branches are okay, the tree can grow some new leaves (although as we are now heading into late summer it might decide not to bother, but to wait till next year).

Thanks @Yamadori!

Is there any way to tell if roots are getting waterlogged? I could re pot?

@partyprop I'm assuming that there are one or more drainage holes in the bottom of the pot and they aren't blocked? You can test that by seeing whether water comes out of the bottom when you are watering.

If so, it is very unlikely to be waterlogged, not when you consider what the weather has been like lately, and with another hot week coming, then I wouldn't stress the plant by repotting it at this stage. Waterlogging with acers is usually only a problem in the winter months anyway, as they have evolved to cope with the Japanese dry winters.

My acer is getting a crispy top half, and I'm pretty certain it's because the top is in the sun, and it's just too hot and sunny for it at the moment. I'm not worried about over/under-watering, as it's planted in the ground. I spray the leaves when I remember, to raise the humidity.

Quite a few of the deciduous trees/shrubs in the garden are shedding a few leaves at the moment because they can't cope with the hot/dry conditions. It's a survival mechanism. They will come back in the spring.

Exposure to the hot sun is the likeliest explanation for this. Getting the plant into the shade should do the trick. And keeping it watered of course.

Following @Yamadori 's advice on a previous thread, I moved all our potted acers to a shady spot and sat them in trays which I have kept topped up with water. I believe this keeps the air slightly damp. Seems to be doing the trick

Presumably your trays are filled with gravel or pebbles so the trees aren’t actually sitting in the water

We left the house with a friend for a week, come back and my beautiful Acer has gone the same.
(happened last year two).
Is your acer in a pot? Have you got gravel at the bottom of the pot?
Is it say on a dish? When watering do you water till you see water coming out the bottom of pot (into the dish) or hear the water going through the gravel? (good sign of enough water). Are you watering at night? (Water as late in the evening as you can, directly into the soil.. Acers are not bothered with moisture on leaves).

What compost is your acer in? Ideally it should be loam-based ericaceous compost with Agricultural grit or sand added (not play sand).

However Acer's in the ground do better than potted acer. But before doing this, move your acer whilst in the pot to area you would plant and make sure its happy there. (leave the acer in its pot, in the spot for a month before planting in the ground).

Placement, where is your acer placed? Acer's do not like all day sun. Morning or evening sun is the best. Not midday. Acers also don't like wind.

This was our predicament, One half our garden is sheltered from wind but not the full day sun. The other half is shaded but not sheltered from wind. This year our placement still isn't right (we tried half windy and half sunny - Still too much full sun), so we are now moving our acer to the shaded (but windy) part of the garden.

Acer's will tolerate wind more than they do sun! Placement is everything with them.

Ours is in full sun and struggles from mid-July onwards. It is well established and over 8 feet tall in a small garden so I can’t really move it. Next year, I plan to buy a parasol and place it to give some shade in very sunny days. I am not even joking because it really is so beautiful before the crispiness starts.

Sorry to resurrect this thread but need some tips! My acer has crispy leaves, I’m sure from leaf scorch. However it’s in the ground not in a container, should I move it?

Buy a moisture meter, they are really cheap and well worth the money

What's your soil type, is it in a position sheltered from wind, and is it in full sun all day, and how long has it been in the ground? When did it last rain round your way, and have you watered it at all?

Crispy leaves are 100% due to a lack of water in the leaves causing them to dry out, but there's a variety of causes. So sorry for all the questions!

@Yamadori thank you! We have clay soil and it’s in full sun from around 10am until sunset. No shelter from the wind. It hasn’t rained for a week or so, we are in the SE and I have been watering it. I only moved it from a container about 6 weeks ago so I wondered if I’ve made it stressed.

I've found acers don't like wind. I can grow them well at one side of our house but not the other. I have tried several times and each time they have died, even when they have been in shade. The only difference is that one situation is more exposed to wind than the other.

Probably. The time it needs its roots the most is when it is newly leafed out, to take up water for the leaves, and for the leaves to do their job of photosynthesising. Disturbing it has set it back, but fingers crossed it should be okay and recover. Keep it well watered, and don't believe that daft myth about not getting water on the leaves, if anything it needs as much humidity as it can get around what's left of the leaves at the moment, so water all over it with gay abandon. It is almost impossible to overwater something in the ground anyway.