good bye Beni Hime

We determined that our beautiful beni hime was dying or was dead. The leaves had shriveled up and the branches looked dried up. When I bent the dried benches, they broke off with a snap. We pulled the dwarf maple up from the planter and the root ball was almost non-existent. At that point, we knew it was a goner. 

We don't know what caused it to die after it started to leaf again in spring. The soil wasn't water logged. It was moist but not soaked. We didn't notice any apparent signs of disease or pest infestation. I have read that some varieties of dwarf Japanese maples are difficult to grow in containers compared with others. I did not find specific information on Beni Hime. 

TH is especially saddened by the loss of the beni hime. It was a cute dwarf Japanese maple. Anyways, we'll give it some time before we acquire another. 

our japanese maples

Our dwarf Japanese maples are doing very well ever since we applied compost and rearranged their location on the balcony. They seem to be happier. Their leaves are coming in with such vibrant color.

The Koto No Ito seems to have tiny blossoms as they sprout forth new weeping foliage. The beautiful red leaves of the Tamukeyama fan out like delicate blades. And the initial feather like foliage of the Beni Hime have revealed their small star like leaves.