Anyone know about vines/weeds?

MereFM99 · April 2011

I've noticed lots of little red viney-looking weeds (at least I think they're weeds) coming up around our yard. I have no idea what they are, I've done some research and can't find anything that looks similar online. I don't think that they're poisonous because they have 5 points vs. 3, but I want to know what I'm dealing with before I start ripping them out. Figured I'd ask!

vjcjenn1 · April 2011

take a picture for us...

I have a red maple tree...and they are quite expensive...every once in a while, a little sapling pops up somewhere else in the yard and I have a list of family members that want to come dig it up and try to grow it at their house.

MereFM99 · April 2011

We have a red tree in our front yard too, not sure if it's a maple or something else but people seem to comment on it a lot. I thought that it could be a sapling at first when it was just one, but they're popping up in the back yard too, in multiple spots. I'll take a picture tonight...

vjcjenn1 · April 2011

I think actually it's a japanese red maple but if that's what you have, I'm sure its it...let it grow a little then try to dig it up and put it in a good spot...or try to sell it/give it away

MereFM99 · April 2011

I just looked up japanese red maples and that's definitely what we have, and the leaves of the little plants that are popping up look pretty similar. Now I'm kind of excited! But I'm still wondering how they ended up in the backyard. I'll give them a closer look tonight and if that's what they are, I'll see if I can transplant them or give them away. I'm glad I researched a little before assuming they were weeds and yanking them out, thank you!

lsgarver · April 2011

Maples have those little helicopter seeds so they probably can travel to the back yard.

I'd rip 'em out--they can develop pretty deep roots pretty fast making them harder to pull as they mature.

MereFM99 · April 2011

I think I'm going to dig them out and put them in big pots to see if they'll grow a bit more, then maybe I can re-plant them in better locations, maybe give a few away. I think that we have somewhere between 5-10!

vjcjenn1 · April 2011

OMG, I actually feel so proud of myself that I had the answer...I feel like such a homeowner, passing on homeowner advice to others, rather then just receiving it

Ragdolls · April 2011

Japanese maples are lovely! We always have them popping up in the yard and, while I agree I wouldn't let them take root to far into the ground, they're definitely worth potting and/or passing along.

MereFM99 · April 2011

vjcjenn1:
OMG, I actually feel so proud of myself that I had the answer...I feel like such a homeowner, passing on homeowner advice to others, rather then just receiving it

Ha ha, I think that I'm going to be on the advice-receiving side for some time, given that my first reaction was to freak out over the red poison ivy that I thought I had found (I was probably thinking through my plan to get rid of the poison ivy while staring at the giant red tree completely missing the obvious, lol). I know nothing about plants/trees/landscaping!