How to Choose the Right Japanese Maple Tree

Japanese maples add graceful structure and vibrant color to landscapes.

Japanese maples add structure and color to landscapes like few other trees. They are iconic symbols of fall's entry with their palette of colors that range from red to purple, and chartreuse to orange and gold. Use knowledge about the features and characteristics of your landscape to choose just the right Japanese maple to add beauty to your landscape for years to come.

Things You'll Need

• Paper
• Pen

Instructions

1. Choose a Japanese maple variety that is right for your U.S. Department of Agriculture cold-hardness planting zone. As a measure of safety, choose a tree that is cold hardy to at least two zones lower than where you live. For example, if you live in zone 7, look for Japanese maples that are cold hardy through zones 5 and higher.

2. Pick three prospective spots on your property for planting. Keep a sunlight chart for each spot over a 24-hour period on a sunny day. Identify how much sunlight each location receives from sun-up to sunset. Note whether the morning, early afternoon and late afternoon sunlight is full, partial or shaded. Most Japanese maples prefer morning sun and afternoon shade. With this in mind, review your sunlight chart results to select the best spot in your yard to plant your Japanese maples.

3. Examine the location in terms of how it will accommodate the tree's growth. The tallest Japanese maples can reach heights of 15 to 25 feet tall. Shorter varieties can be trained as short trees or shrubs. Determine whether you can choose a tall-growing Japanese maple, or whether you should focus on a shorter growing variety.

4. Use knowledge about your planting zone, the planting site and how the sunlight reaches the site to choose Japanese maple varieties that will work in your landscape. Japanese maples come in two general types: Dissectum and Palmatum. Dissectum have "weeping," lace-like leaf structures, making them a good choice for a short-growing trees or shrubs, while Palmatum Japanese maples stand upright and tall.

5. Consider popular choices for Dissectum, such as the green-leafed Waterfall and Virdis, and the red-leaved Crimson Queen and Red Dragon. Look at popular Palatum choices including red-leaved Emperor I and the green-leaved Osakasuki. Versicolor and Peaches and Cream, with their green, red and cream leaves make good choices for a variegated Japanese maple.

6. Narrow your choices down to three varieties or fewer. Contact your local cooperative extension office and ask if there is anything special that you should know about each variety before you make a purchase. Use the information they provide to rank your final choices.

7. Call local tree nurseries and garden centers to find out if they have your first, second and third choices. Take a digital photograph of your planting location with your camera or cellular phone and your sun chart on your Japanese maple tree-shopping trip. Show the site location photos and your sun chart to the sales associate for reference in selecting just the right Japanese maple to take home for planting.

Tips & Warnings

• Even if you plant a tall-growing tree, consider one or two shrub varieties. Ask your cooperative extension about insects or pests that are common to your area that attack Japanese maples. Look for healthy trees when shopping. Dead leaves on a trees are a signal of an unhealthy plant.

References

• North Carolina State University; Japanese Maples; Danny Lauderdale;April 23, 2005
• University of Maine Cooperative Extension; Selecting, Planting, and Caring for Trees and Shrubs in the Maine Landscape; Diana Chapin; Lois Berg
• Japanese Maples Online: How to Select a Japanese Maple Tree
• East Fork Nursery: How Do I Choose the Right Japanese Maple?
• Maple Trees: Japanese Maple