Scientific Name:
Acer palmatum
Pronunciation:
AY-sur pal-MAY-tum
Common Name:
Japanese maple
Family Name:
Sapindaceae
Plant Type:
Tree - deciduous
Key ID Features:
Leaves opposite, blades orbicular, most 4-12cm wide, palmately veined, most with 7 broad lobes, some cultivars with dissected leaves or with elliptic leaflets, margins serrate; fruit a schizocarp, 2-3cm wide, mericarps 2, samara-like, thick edge of wings at a 90-120 degree angle. Winter ID: buds, ovoid, have light brown hairs on a papery sheath that extends halfway up.
Habit:
Upright
Form:
Vase
Texture:
Medium
Mature Height:
2 - 3m
Mature Spread:
3 - 4m
Growth Rate:
Moderate
Origin:
Garden origin, S.E. Asia / Japan / China
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 6: (-23 to -18 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun
Soil/Growing Medium:
Well-drained
Landscape Uses:
Fall interest, Shade tree, Specimen plant, Woodland margin
Additional Info:
Google. Cultivars and cultivar groups shown or on campus may include
A. 'Crimson Queen'
A. 'Edna Bergman',
A. 'Koto No Ito',
A. 'Shishio',
A. 'Shojo Nomura',
A. 'Tsuma Beni',
A. Atropurpureum Group,
A. Dissectum Atropurpureum Group and
A. Dissectum Viridis Group (see separate entries for most). Other popular cultivars that may be shown include A. 'Shindeshojo', A. 'Seiryu’, and A. 'Sango Kaku' (over 1000 cultivars exist).
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Simple, Lobed
Arrangement:
Opposite
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible, Palmate venation
Surfaces:
Glabrous
Colour in Summer:
Green, Dark-red
Colour in Fall:
Orange, Red
Shapes:
Obovate, Ovate
Apices:
Acuminate, Acute
Bases:
Hastate, Truncate
Margins:
Serrate
Additional Info:
Spectacular fall colour
Inflorescence Type:
Cyme, Corymb-like
Flower Morphology:
Flowers perfect
Number Of Petals:
5
Corolla Shape:
Rotate/stellate
Ovary Position:
Superior
Colour (petals):
Yellow, Red
Flower Time at Peak:
Apr
Fruit Type:
Samara, Schizocarp
Fruit Colour:
Green, Pink, Red, Brown
Fruiting Time:
Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct
Additional Info:
Schizocarps showny on some cultivars, split into samara-like mericarps after dispersal
Bark Morphology:
Smooth, Lightly fissured
Bark or Stem Colour:
Grey, Tan
Leaf Bud Type:
Ovoid
Leaf Scar Shape:
Crescent shaped
Maintenance:
Low
Pest Susceptibility:
Anthracnose, Canker or sap rot, Caterpillar or cutworm, Mildew, Wilt (Pest resistant, Disease resistant, Rabbit resistant)
Specific Pests:
Winter moth, Verticillium wilt, Limbs of some red cultivars may regress back to species.
Course(s):
- CLT Training
- Level 1 Apprenticeship
Location(s):
- (BCE) Boulevard (Circular) Eastend : new in 2017 - cv.?
- (BUG) BUG garden : Atropurpureum Group
- (CGW) Community Garden West : Atropurpureum Group
- (FEA) Field lab Equipment Area : cv. 'Crimson Queen'
- (GAZ) GAZebo
- (GAZE) GAZebo East : Dissectum Atropurpureum Group
- (HPZ) Horticulture PlaZa : 467 cvs. Dissectum Shojo Shidare, Koto No Ito, Shishio, Shojo Nomura, Tsuma Beni
- (ONE) Overpass North side East : Unknown cv. under Chitalpa and DIssectum Viridis Group near electrical box
- (PPL) Pine PLanting : Dissectum Atropurpureum Group
- (TFL) Turf Field Lab
- (TFLN) Turf Field Lab North : cv. Edna Bergman