Acer palmatum
The Japanese Maple is one of the rare trees that offers four distinct spectacles in a single year.
In spring, the palmate young leaves emerge in pink or vivid red shades depending on the cultivar — a bud break of rare delicacy. Summer brings a dense, cooling canopy. Then comes autumn, the moment for which Acer palmatum is universally admired: an explosion of colour moving through yellow, orange, and deep red before leaf fall. And winter finally reveals the bare structure of the tree — a graphic, refined silhouette that reflects the work accomplished.
Native to the mountain forests of Japan, Korea, and China, it is a deciduous tree that needs winter cold to regenerate. It is not difficult, but it is demanding: it rewards those who know how to observe it and offer the right conditions at the right moment.
An important note on cultivars: hundreds exist — Deshojo, Bloodgood, Katsura, Shishigashira, among others. Varieties with vivid red or very dissected foliage are often more sensitive to direct sun and desiccating wind than the straight species with green foliage. If you are growing a coloured cultivar, adapt the exposure and protection accordingly.
Key characteristics:
The Japanese Maple is one of the rare trees that offers four distinct spectacles in a single year.
In spring, the palmate young leaves emerge in pink or vivid red shades depending on the cultivar — a bud break of rare delicacy. Summer brings a dense, cooling canopy. Then comes autumn, the moment for which Acer palmatum is universally admired: an explosion of colour moving through yellow, orange, and deep red before leaf fall. And winter finally reveals the bare structure of the tree — a graphic, refined silhouette that reflects the work accomplished.
Native to the mountain forests of Japan, Korea, and China, it is a deciduous tree that needs winter cold to regenerate. It is not difficult, but it is demanding: it rewards those who know how to observe it and offer the right conditions at the right moment.
An important note on cultivars: hundreds exist — Deshojo, Bloodgood, Katsura, Shishigashira, among others. Varieties with vivid red or very dissected foliage are often more sensitive to direct sun and desiccating wind than the straight species with green foliage. If you are growing a coloured cultivar, adapt the exposure and protection accordingly.
Key characteristics: