My oldest is leafing out (below). Some one year old seedlings have been slower and are just pushing partially leafed out. I have 2 large tridents and one is leafing out and the other is just starting to swell. Looks like my Cedar Elm and Gingko are going to be the last to the party!
I think this is where the usefulness of the single USDA zone based on minimum temperatures breaks down. My summer average is 73F, drive 15 miles inland and the zone which gets colder also gets more summer heat, averaging 91F. Plus our growing season tends to be dominated by offshore flow that brings morning and mid-day marine layers of fog (I have to over-summer my ficus inland if they need severe root pruning). By the time we get our hotter days with low humidity from the Santa Ana onshore flow, the maple growing season is nearing its end.
Patience is required. Not every tree proceeds at the same pace. Even in my nursery individuals of the same species leaf out at different rates so there's not really any sense comparing yours to other similar trees.
WOW this is good to know! I just moved to Orlando FL and brought my JM with me. I am still worried about them not getting enough dormancy but your experience gives me hope.
My maple pictured above was turning “color” in mid-December and lost its leaves around the first of Jan. The overnight temps drop into the low 40F and daylight length is the shortest.
Each year I send quantities of JM seed to a couple of growers in sub-tropical Brisbane. Their plan is to grow lots of seedlings and hope that at least some have the genes to tolerate warmer climate then grow from those to breed a tropical adapted JM.
As others have mentioned, individual plants will go at their own pace. Several years ago I planted a couple of dozen JM from the same batch of cuttings. I have 20 or so left in pots. Some are in full leaf, others are just starting to show movement.
The pot is way too big. Now would be a good time to fix that.
