Japanese maples add exotic touches to local gardens

Most of the native trees in our yard have lost their leaves, but we still have a colorful display in our garden. It’s provided by our collection of Japanese maples, which are perfectly hardy in our area if they are sited correctly.

I learned my lesson about siting these trees the hard way — I killed one. Japanese maples are hardy in zone 5, but they don’t tolerate winter wind — at all. I planted one right off the driveway where it looked great. It survived two mild winters and then died one year when sub-zero winds howled.

Japanese maples (Acer palmatum) are native to Japan, China, Korea and eastern Siberia. The Japanese have used them in gardens and as bonsai for centuries. The trees were introduced in Europe and the rest of the temperate world in the 1800s.

Our oldest Japanese maple is ‘Bloodgood,’ a purple-leafed selection I remember from my aunt’s garden. It takes its name from the Bloodgood nursery on Long Island, which introduced the tree shortly after the Civil War.

Ours has thrived in the shade of the old Norway spruces that line our lot. It’s about 20 feet tall, and pruning has kept it to 15 feet across. It has deeply lobed leaves that are bright red right now. A more popular dark-leafed tree with cut-leafed foliage, ‘Crimson Queen,’ has replaced ‘Bloodgood’ in recent years, although the old standby is still available.

Our second Japanese maple is probably the most spectacular tree on the lot this time of year. It presides over the back pond and is the color of burning embers at the moment. It was simply labeled as Acer viridis when we purchased it, but a little research indicated it’s a cut-leaf Japanese maple (Acer palmatum dissectum) of the Viride group. The trees in this category are more like round shrubs. They top out at about 6 feet and have finely cut, green leaves with up to 13 lobes. Ours has lime green foliage in the spring, which is usually edged with red, and the branches cascade down to the water. Like most Japanese maples, this one grows wider than its 4-foot height.

Two other Japanese maples live in pots where they’ve both done well for more than a decade. ‘Sharp’s Pygmy’ is a round, bushy tree with very small leaves, each only about an inch across. It’s frequently trained as a bonsai. At about 4 feet tall and wide, ours is about as big as they get.

‘Seiryu,’ our other potted Japanese maple, is the only upright tree in the family. It has finely cut green leaves and an airy, open habit with a vase shape. Ours is about 4 feet tall and its leaves are just starting to turn bright red. It summers right off the driveway where the other Japanese maple died. The potted trees will winter in the garage once they are dormant.

Most Japanese maples are grafted trees and need well-drained soil and consistent moisture. They’ll tolerate our alkaline soil. And while some take full sun, most enjoy dappled shade or at least protection from hot afternoon light. They have few insect or disease issues — just watch out for wind.

There’s a Japanese maple for every garden — in the ground, in a pot or as a bonsai. It just takes a little planning to add this exotic touch to Wisconsin gardens.