Identifying Jm's with 100% accuracy is virtually impossible.. It is hard to tell on the trunk whether it is grafted or not a better picture would help... It is very nice what ever it is ...if it is grafted it looks like a Tamukuyama to me... but there are many similar dissectums although the color looks right. If it is not grafted it is just a seed grown dissectum ... BTW if it is grafted and the person doesn't know what it is.. being puchased from a farmers market I'd bet it was stolen from someone ...and thats why they didn't know the name. A true named cultivar of that size would be several hundred $$ anywhere.. If you paid little for it and it is grafted I'd bet ya it's HOT....David

oh, we paid several hundred for it...that's why I am so nervous about it lol I don't think it was stolen. They have been selling at the farmer's market for years. And they may very well know what it is, they just didn't understand what my husband was asking.

How embarrassing...I went out to take a better photo of the trunk and there stick up out of the dirt was a mostly buried yellow tag. It's says ACER Tamukeyama, Red dissectum, ht 9' Width 12' If it really get's 12 feet wide, I am going to have to find a new home for it!

Ok thats great it is a nice one ... I thought it was a typical farmers market item ... no if it had a tag it likely wasn't stolen that and you paid some $$ for it. Remember..morning sun afternoon shade or better yet afternoon filtered sun... water only when dry DO NOT fertilize this year ...and be careful if you plan to plant out ..may be better to wait til leaf fall in fall cuase it will be hard to get it out of your pot uninjured .....And if you do plant out make sure its not too root bound try to seperate the twisted mess if thats what you find a little cutting won't hurt. and plant at level it's now planted or a bit above ( above soil line).. do not plant lower to prevent trunk /root rot.If you think the tree has been out in sun it's ok to give it some ...if you think it was under shade cloth keep in shade and gradually move out ... NOW GET TO WORK ;>) David

is it okay to leave it in the pot? with it's long branches already touching the ground from the pot..I am worried it will get damaged if I put it in the ground and the branches don't have anywhere to hang. Plus, I can move it into the garage if there is a danger of an ice storm. We don't get much snow here in Charlotte, but we get an ice storm every few years.

OOOPS my bad I assumed you were panning on planting it out...No you can leave it but at some point you will need to take out and check for root boundness ..I guess at that time you can trim up the roots a bit and put back in with proper new medium or find a larger pot (if that is possible ;>))
yes if you planted out some would touch the ground but that is natural for dissectums except for a few upright and semi upright ones ...thats the way they naturally grow ..you can always trim "em up a bit or stake up the "lazy" branches which I did with my Tamu for fun!!...NOT that I am trying to tell you to plant out.. keeping it in a pot is fine I am doing so with most of my new ones for the same reason... this stinkin' freeze. I see the only downside with keeping it in a container is that one is ...well not beautiful ( I think you would agree) and finding a large nice looking one larger than that plain jane one may be hard ...David

Thank you for all your great advice! Yes, I agree that this not the most beautiful pot lol I have looked at other pots in garden centers and haven't found one worthy of my tree yet :) I am going to have to get creative! My sis in law is a potter.. I wonder if I can get her to make me a giant pot. Or maybe I can get my brother, the carpenter, to build me a pretty wood one that I can just put the plain pot inside of.

I have put most of mine in cedar medium and large octagonal planters Menards , walmart etc has 'em ... they look nice and the trees seem to like them ...you may have disemble the planters with time to get that sucker out as they get to big for 'em but they arn't that expensive and look great ... but if your brother could build one to hide the current pot that would be easier ... as I said if you repot and not do a hide-a-pot I'd wait til fall and have it be a family event you will need them it will be a BIG job IMHO!!! David