This Japanese maple has a 4-branches junction half-way from the ground. Before this causes an inverse taper I decided to air-layer a small branch that will be used later for grafting. The tree is more than 1 meter tall and the trunk will also be air-layered in a year or two to build a more compact tree.
Where we want to see roots grow, the bark and cambium are removed completely to expose the xylem, on a length of at least two times the diameter.
Some rooting hormone powder #3 is mixed with water to make a paste that is applied along the top circumference of the exposed area.
A plastic bag is attached around the branch and filled with wet sphagnum moss.
The bag is attached with duct tape and holes are punched at the bottom for drainage. I leave the top relatively open as the air-layer will be shaded by the foliage and will not dry quickly.
