Air Layering - Ask Extension
Hello,
I would like to attempt air layering a Japanese maple and a Halesia tetraptera this year. I basically know the process but am unsure about the...
Knowledgebase
Air Layering #891706
Asked January 18, 2025, 4:16 PM EST
Hello,
I would like to attempt air layering a Japanese maple and a Halesia tetraptera this year. I basically know the process but am unsure about the best time to do it. Is Spring the best time? Should the branches chosen to layer be fully leafed out? Should I wait until the Halesia flowers and fruits prior to layering or can a non-flowering branch be used? Thank you.
Baltimore County Maryland
Expert Response
We don't have personal experience in air-layering those trees but here is good information from the USDA-Forest Service for
Halesia carolina propagation:
https://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/pubs/misc/ag_654/volume_2/halesia/carolina.htm#:~:text=Vegetative%20Reproduction
LBJ Wildflower Center doesn't specify when, but softwood cuttings are taken in spring (if that's when cuttings root, that's also probably when a stem would respond to air-layering attempts) It does almost look like a word is missing from the text...:
https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=hate3#:~:text=root%20cuttings%20and-,softwood%20cuttings,-will%20root.%20Rooted
This page from Clemson Extension suggests Japanese maples respond well to air-layering: https://hgic.clemson.edu/hot-topic/air-layering/ but according to a couple of bonsai forums we looked at, it seems as if some cultivars are much harder to root than others.
Good luck.
Christine
Halesia carolina propagation:
https://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/pubs/misc/ag_654/volume_2/halesia/carolina.htm#:~:text=Vegetative%20Reproduction
LBJ Wildflower Center doesn't specify when, but softwood cuttings are taken in spring (if that's when cuttings root, that's also probably when a stem would respond to air-layering attempts) It does almost look like a word is missing from the text...:
https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=hate3#:~:text=root%20cuttings%20and-,softwood%20cuttings,-will%20root.%20Rooted
This page from Clemson Extension suggests Japanese maples respond well to air-layering: https://hgic.clemson.edu/hot-topic/air-layering/ but according to a couple of bonsai forums we looked at, it seems as if some cultivars are much harder to root than others.
Good luck.
Christine
