GARDENER'S READING ROOM
The Art of Gardening
Trees & Shrubs

Japanese Maples

Watch out! Japanese Maples can become an obsession. On the other hand, creating such beauty in your yard will bring such peace… As the tree buyer for Sky, I am always being awed by the diversity of color, form, and texture in this single species.

For a thousand years in Japan, these plants were the province of aristocrats. Now they are available to all - over 250 varieties worth, with a range of uses that far outreaches other tree species. How many trees, after all, can you fit six to twelve of in a small urban yard - all different?

Upright Japanese Maples fall into groups categorized by height. The taller group get over 15 feet- some reach to 25 feet. Bloodgood is the best known for its dark red foliage, Beni Kawa for delicate green foliage, yellow fall color, and red winter bark, and Osakazuki for its crimson fall color. These trees may be used as an accent plant, as shade for smaller plants, or for interplanting with similar-sized plants for a naturalistic grove effect.

The next group is the upright mid-sized trees - probably the most useful in most urban landscapes. They can range from 6 to 15 feet high. A few of the many outstanding specimens in this range: Ueno Yama reaches 10-12 feet. Its leaves open yellow and orange, turn green for the summer, then peach in the fall. Beni Shi En transforms itself from red in early spring, to purple, to medium green - then pinkish in late summer, and gold in fall. An ever-changing spectacle! Beni Schichihenge has white margined green leaves overlaid with pink and orange. These trees can be used like their larger sisters, in containers, or lighting up a planting of evergreens.

The dwarf group, between 4 and 8 feet, serves as a different layer in the landscape. Lozita looks like a miniature Bloodgood. Orange Dream offers another color show: bright orange new growth turns to yellow foliage tipped with red, turning to yellow green in summer and bright yellow gold in fall. Then there are the ever-popular laceleafs - a seemingly boundless category! Green Mist offers lacy green leaves misted with red-pink; there are several good straight green or straight red ones. Or consider pushing the limits with Orangeola, whose red is overlaid with new orangish growth in summer, and turns brilliant orange-red in fall. Any of these dwarf varieties blend easily in existing landscapes - sized like a shrub, the drama of a tree!

The Puget Sound climate is perfect for Japanese Maples. You can choose varieties that flourish in full sun, part shade, or shade, allowing them to fit anywhere in our varying landscapes. Here at Sky we’re privileged to carry over 90 varieties of these highly revered plants - come start your own obsession!

By Bill Bloomfield
Skylights Spring/Summer 2005, Vol 19, No. 2

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