Acer palmatum ~ Japanese Maple

Japanese Maple is a beautiful small deciduous tree with a broad-rounded crown and low branching.  Large palmate green leaves have varying shades of yellow, red-purple, and bronze for fall color.  Small non-showy umbels of red-purple flowers bloom mid-spring followed by samaras.  Grows best in rich, moist, slightly acidic well-drained soils.  Prefers full sun in cooler climates, but needs afternoon shade in southern areas.

MAINTENANCE NEEDS: Low maintenance.  Water regularly.  Mulch in southern climates to keep roots cool.  Keep pruning to a minimum and prune in fall or winter.  Potential issues include stem canker, leaf spots, fusarium, wilt, botrytis, anthracnose, and root rots.  Potential insect pests include aphids, scale, borers, root weevils, and mites.  Chlorosis may occur in high pH soils

LANDSCAPE USES: Group Plantings or Specimen Tree, Woodland Gardens, Privacy Screen, Street Tree, and  Shade Tree

COMPANION PLANTS: Pieris, Rhododendron, Hosta

IMAGE: Fab5669, Châlons - petit jard (42), CC BY-SA 3.0, (2) Krzysztof Golik, Acer palmatum in Eastwoodhill Arboretum (5), CC BY-SA 4.0, (3) Auckland Museum, Acer palmatum Thunb. (AM AK305049-1), CC BY 4.0, (4) Photo by David J. Stang, Acer palmatum 4zz, CC BY-SA 4.0 

*As plants have ranges in appearance they may not appear as the images shown.