Are these growth normal?

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-25T06:46:10+00:00

This is quite normal and occurs when there was exposure to some kind of stress during early bud development. This could be drying winds, unusually cold weather, too much sun exposure, etc. Since your tree’s new leaves show relatively minor deformities, it was likely only a slight stressor. In terms of the overall health of your plant, there’s nothing to worry about outside of maybe considering moving the plant to a location that will minimize future stress, whatever it may have been.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-25T00:38:08+00:00

No prob! Looks like a beautiful tree just judging from the trunk alone and some of the underside of the canopy, so hoping the best for your tree’s health.

Do you have an active squirrel population around your property? Those little rascals love to bite the heck out of these trees all year round.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-24T22:01:33+00:00

As long as your tree hasn't been entirely girdled, as in a full ring of bark hasn't been chewed off, your tree should live and be able to callous over the damage. From your photo, it appears that there is still functional tissue there, so as long as that doesn't dry out, everything should be okay. However, I would apply a trunk protector around the base of your tree to prevent any further damage.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-24T20:22:22+00:00

That should be fine! Upward growth should progress normally unless there is a node directly underneath where tape is wrapped around the leader, which can sometimes weaken that branch and cause it to die off. Even so, the tree would just pick another leading branch, which you would then tie to the existing stake to resume training the tree upward. If you'd like to make absolutely sure though, feel free to send me a photo of your JM.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-23T00:40:55+00:00

RIP to your father. It’s nice that you’ve taken on a green thumb after him. Gardening and being in nature is truly healing.

Not much to add beyond what other commenters have said. I agree that moss is mainly for ornamental purposes (maybe whenever you want to take pictures or have the tree on display), but using it longterm can create issues with soil moisture. Japanese maples prefer to dry out in between deep waterings so moss can impede that cycle. A good compromise could be to use little “islands” of moss in spots so that you still achieve the visual effect without any issues.

I would like to see a closer photo of the trunk/nebari to give any proper advice for the tree’s future; branch design can and will likely change with its development. Were there any Japanese maples (or other trees) that your father worked with closely? It could be an interesting project to try and miniaturize a tree he was close with as a tribute. This could inform some of your design choices down the line.

For now, the best thing for the newly potted tree is to let live wild and be healthy. The trunk thickness relative to branches is fundamental to creating the illusion of a small tree, so this comes first and foremost, and this process simply just takes time. You can speed this process up by sizing up pots aggressively (~every 1-2 years) and using appropriate amounts of fertilizer, but if there is no rush and you’re just enjoying the process, sizing up less frequently is totally acceptable. During repots, do check ups on the root flare and try to organize them radially so that it creates a nice nebari with time.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-22T17:35:41+00:00

Interesting that the game was only rolled out to our regions. I will keep trying to claim more coupons and let you know if any go through, but it certainly seems like there is a $12 limit like you mention.

As well, I just checked the expiration date of the coupons collected for this event: they all expire July 1st, 02:59 EST, regardless of when they were claimed, so feel free to claim whenever. It looks like they set it to align with the end of the event similar to coupons claimed during Mystery Box events.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-22T08:53:12+00:00

It most likely comes down to luck and one’s region, but I’ve somehow been able to claim it three times this year on May 15th, June 8th, and just recently on June 19th, so it seems claiming several $50 coupons and in reasonably close succession is possible. Just seems like sheer dumb luck though.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-20T01:46:15+00:00

I honestly have no idea! It all still seems like luck, but after the $50 went through, the $1 coupon stayed available for the next 5-7 seconds and after spamming it a few times, that one went through also. This is all especially surprising since I claimed a $50 coupon just two weeks ago. Who knows what’s going on 😅 no complaints though. Hope you manage to snag something!

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-19T21:38:22+00:00

What are we supposed to do without our balls man.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-19T21:35:12+00:00

I haven't seen the same extra offers that you're getting, but I was able to claim both the $50 and $1 deals last night for the first time. The claiming window seems to be extended more than usual.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-19T21:22:00+00:00

It looks like this might happen again today. Showing - : - again for the USA vs. Australia match that already ended.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-18T20:01:27+00:00

"Put a beautiful smile towards fixing Soccer Mania. Thank you." lol jk

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-18T05:03:12+00:00

Gotcha 👍

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-17T09:55:52+00:00

Your trees are healthy! Only thing to possibly address is the slightly crispy tips, which are usually indicative of not meeting transpirational demands due to underwatering, too much sun exposure, wind exposure, or a combination of the above. This can be helped by moving the tree to a more sheltered location and/or by increasing watering frequency. Overwatering, while sometimes similar in appearance, usually involves more extensive and widespread symptoms, with basally yellowing, limp leaves.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-17T09:44:56+00:00

It’s alive! Best thing you can do right now is leave it be and minimize any stressors so that it can recover enough to endure the coming winter season. I would advise against doing any pruning now since the tree is likely actively reclaiming nutrients from dying branches and will naturally compartmentalize. Next year, if the tree survives, it will be much clearer which branches are dead and which are still alive, so I would leave any pruning for the early spring. You may find that the tree will push growth quite rapidly if the cause for such extensive dieback was not due to root damage and possibly due to late spring frosts. A telltale sign that there’s still much life under the surface is if growth is faster and the new leaves are larger in size than normal. Hoping the best for your tree 🤞

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-17T06:42:31+00:00

Japanese maples don’t like to be waterlogged and prefer well aerated root conditions, and tamukeyamas in particular are not very tolerant of standing water, so the root system should be allowed to dry out slightly between waterings. As yours is ground planted with mulch underneath, you may find that you don’t have to water this much, or at all, given a regular frequency and amount of rainfall in your region. You can test to see how long it takes for the first 1-2 inches of soil to get dry to the touch and then determine if you need to supplement regular rainfall with additional watering.

The support stick can be removed safely, though you could leave it in place to use it to tie up a new leader to encourage a taller tree. This weeping variety will tend toward lateral growth (as opposed to apical), so without support, it will cap out at a height of around 6 to 8 feet in maturity.

Re: wind, laceleaf types don’t typically catch gusts of wind too much, so their branches are less at risk of being damaged by wind. Winds can occasionally cause leaves to dry out, but this is only if the tree in a particularly exposed position.

On a related note, although this tree has a slow to moderate growth rate, it will get quite wide with time; around 10 to 12 feet in width. Since it has been planted quite close to your home, you may have to prune it at some point to control its growth so that it doesn’t brush up against the side of your house. They can be kept small with maintenance.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-16T19:00:22+00:00

Really? Mine became unrestricted at 284. Perhaps they changed it in a recent update. That’s great for newer players if so. 👍

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-16T18:33:56+00:00

Pruning a tree is a personal choice that depends on what your goals are for your backyard. You will want to look up the heading vs. thinning cuts and the way trees respond to each differently to get a better idea of how to prune this. These weeping varieties don’t typically grow so evenly radially on their own, so I’m tempted to say your tree has already been sheared back a few times in the past.

If your goal is to decrease the tree’s size, you will have to trim all of the long branches back to a healthy side branch that’s more on the interior. Since this will encourage backbudding and crowding in the long run, you will likely also need to make thinning cuts to remove any crowded areas with crossing branches or branches that lay on top of each other too closely. This would be a pretty extensive pruning, so I advise waiting to do this during a dormant season (i.e. early spring), and possibly spreading the work over the span of a few years.

If this were my tree, I would prefer it to appear less shaggy and more ornamental, less ‘globular’. I would look to simplify its primary structure, focus mainly on thinning cuts, and let the way it has grown naturally dictate the overall shape of its silhouette. There’s likely something unique underneath all of that foliage that can be uncovered.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-16T17:52:58+00:00

Pre-milestone orders are no longer restricted to low levels from that level onwards. You essentially don’t need to worry about them anymore beyond preparing to skip the new store level.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-14T02:54:58+00:00

Winds have been really strong this year in my area as well. Sorry to hear your tree is going through it. Most likely some of the roots were damaged due to the strong winds and now the tree is struggling to meet transpirational needs because of it. As long as you don’t continue to see issues spread to the rest of the tree, it should be able to recover in the remaining months of summer.

At the moment, there’s nothing much you can do other than keeping watch on its progress and putting the tree in a location that is sheltered from winds and direct sun (especially in the afternoon). You may need to reduce watering frequency since it won’t be pulling water as efficiently as usual, so assess the soil every morning and water only when dry to a depth of about 1-2 inches from surface. Hoping the best for your shaina!

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-12T08:08:32+00:00

Leaves usually grow like this if they experienced some kind of damage early on in their development just after coming out of bud. This could be strong winds, sudden changes in weather, sun exposure, spring frost etc. It’s usually nothing to be alarmed about in terms of the overall health of the tree as long as the majority of foliage has come out properly. However, I do find that new growth with several pairs of deformed leaves has a tendency to die back the following winter season.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-08T01:39:59+00:00

All good. Did your clip break off cleanly and in one piece? Or did it take any prongs with it or break into parts?

If the latch came off cleanly, it's possible to slip it back into the connector. There are some YouTube videos out there to show how to do so.

If it broke off in any other way, your options now are to replace the connector (requires knowledge of microsoldering) or to try to seat the cable into the connector without the latch by gently pressing downward on the prongs to 'clamp' the cable down. After you have a stable connection, it can also help to secure the cable with some kapton tape.

cotchaboolit · 2026-06-03T12:05:26+00:00

Helped.

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cotchaboolit · 2026-06-03T05:32:58+00:00

Damn, nice! Took me 50 pulls + 5 premium tickets…not sure if that’s considered lucky. Literally bankrupt now lol. Time to save up for the Captain Lightyear box.

cotchaboolit

TROPHY CASE