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We purchased our Acer platanoides globosum last year and noticed that our ball is very too heavy with leaves with not a lot in the middle and lower sections. I have asked the nursery for advice and have only been told “it is a nice specimen”.
My question is, how hard can I cut it back so that over time we can have a nice round ball?
From the Hillier website:
This variety of Norway Maple has a particularly tight global crown, which is grown and then grafted onto the trunk of a Norway Maple at 2.2m high for the vesicular tissues to join. The compact canopy is initially round in shape, but as the tree matures it reaches out a little to form a longer, rugby ball shape which can stretch to 5m across. It remains consistently dense and uniform, without any requirement for future pruning or annual maintenance schedules.
So there shouldn't be any need to prune it.
Googling it, Acer platanoides globosum can be used for bonsai and I see many images of round balls. Without photos it is hard to know, but other Acres are very hardy (in terms of pruning).
Light pruning is fine all year round, but I would do heave pruning only in winter. Its best to be patient with it, You can definitely cut 20 odd percent of branches to the trunk.
