Help with acer please

Hi there - i am new to the forum but am seeking advice on my japanese maple. I have had it for four years and it is growing nicely in a sheltered spot in a pot.
There is loads of new growth but the leaves are really droopy!!
What is going on here?

 

Hi and welcome to GC. A photo would be helpul with diagnosing the problem if there is 1. Some of my Acers' new growth does sometimes appear droopy until the leaves unfurl properly, so there may be nothing wrong with yours. Obviously anything that is looking droopy often responds to a good dose of "Adam's Ale!" but sure you will have tried that already. If the Acer is fine damp wise and things don't improve it might be time to repot the tree with some fresh compost. At the same time have a look for any kind of grubs which might be eating the roots....the dreaded vine weevil as an example that we all love so much.

 

Oh dear, I am a total novice clearly as I have no idea what 'adams ale' is???
I am thinking you are right, it probably needs repotting, just a bit daunted by it as its massive!

I think it definately needs some attention as the leaves went brown last year - I put it down to the wind and moved it to a more sheltered spot. I wasn't expecting much from it this year after that so was surprised to see a whole tree full of beautiful leaves this morning .

Thank you again... I'm on a massive learning curve with my garden, and trying to simplify things by planting more raised beds and getting rid of the pots.

 

Adam's Ale is water!. Don't worry about the learning curve, I'm still on 1 and only been gardening for about 35 years!

 

Have a look at this video which tells you how to repot and root prune



It's best done whilst the plant is dormant, so not sure if you can do it now without damaging the plant, but perhaps @whis4ey or some other Acer expert can advise.

For any other plant I just use a gardening saw and hack the root ball back, but I managed to kill a lovely Acer that way once so I'm a bit more careful with them.