On Thu, 23 Jul 2015 17:36:40 +0100, Bob Hobden wrote:

"Emery Davis" wrote

Bob Hobden wrote:

I wonder what would happen using a Sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus)
seedling as the rootstock?

Wrong section of the genus. Grafting inter-section is a dicey business
in Acer and doesn't usually work. This said, pseudoplatanus is
sometimes considered "universal understock" so it might work once in a
while. (For grafting species that don't have a suitable in-section
understock available, pseudoplatanus is sometimes used, but there is a
very high failure rate).
[]
What affect does that have on the final tree? Does using it as a
rootstock make the maple become quick growing and eventually larger than
it should?

If you could get a palmatum cultivar to take on sycamore understock, it
would in all likelyhood be a weak and short-lived plant. Almost
certainly not larger, since the two are not really compatible.

Then again I don't know anyone who's bothered to try, so who knows?

FWIW seed grown palmatum understock is so cheap and easy that anything
from the palmata section is grafted to it. So if you buy an Acer
japonicum cultivar, or something like Acer shirasawanum 'Aureum', or even
oliverianum if you're adventuresome, it will have the same palmatum
rootstock as any Japanese Maple cultivar.

The upshot of all this is: buy your Acer tree from a reputable nursery
like Hippopottering, Junker, Mallet Court, etc. If you buy from a "big
box" you really get what you pay for...



--
Gardening in Lower Normandy