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Maples for
Autumn Colour
As
the weather cools in late summer and the days shorten noticeably so
the deciduous trees and shrubs begin to withdraw chlorophyll from their
leaves in preparation for the winter shutdown. With less of that vital
green pigment to mask them, the other colours within the leaves begin
to show through.
While
the best of the autumn color may be over for this year, the coming winter
months are the time to consider how best to prepare for next years autumn
glory. When it comes to the most vibrant tones, the genus Acer, the
maples, includes many sterling contributors.
Most of
the 150-odd species of maples are deciduous trees, though some are shrubby
and a few are evergreen. Acer is primarily a temperate northern hemisphere
genus, ranging from around 59? southwards to the mountains of the subtropics.
With the exception of a few Eurasian species, principally the Norway
Maple (Acer platanoides) and the Sycamore Maple (Acer pseudoplatanus),
most of our garden maples are derived from Asian and North American
species.
Maples
do flower, but apart from a few with showy tassel-like blooms, most
are grown solely as foliage plants, And while the thrust of this article
is about autumn colour, many of the best autumn maples are also excellent
spring and summer foliage plants. Of course, getting good autumn colours
depends greatly on the climate and the shades vary from year to year
even in districts known for their autumn foliage.
Generally
the best colours develop during a prolonged autumn with warm, still
days and cool but not freezing nights. Soon after the first frosts strike
the last leaves fall. Although most maples colour to some extent in
autumn, the following species and their cultivars are readily available
and among the brightest and most reliable. Acer buergerianum
Trident
Maple
This 10-12
m tall, round-headed tree eastern China and Japan gets its common name
from the leaves, which usually have three lobes. The leaves are small
and primarily red in autumn, with tints of orange and yellow. Acer cappadocicum
Caucasian
Maple
Found
from the Caucasus to northern India, broad-crowned, 15-20m tall tree
is best known for its bright golden yellow autumn foliage. Cultivars
include 'Aureum', with yellow foliage in spring and autumn, and 'Rubrum',
which has bright red young stems and spring leaves. Acer davidii
Snakebark
Maple
Best known
for its white-striped and flecked green to purple bark, this 15 m tall
Chinese species has 3-lobed or unlobed leaves that often colour brilliantly
in red, gold and orange tones before falling. 'George Forrest' is a
large-leaved cultivar. Acer griseum
Paperbark
Maple
Again,
best known for its bark, which is warm brown and peeling, the foliage
of this 5-10 m tall Chinese tree turns bright red in autumn. Because
of the red-brown bark, the foliage colour can seem muted and is perhaps
best seen at a distance where the colour of the whole tree can be appreciated.
Acer japonicum
Full-moon
Maple
This slow-growing
Japanese native is a small tree with tiered branches and 7-11-lobed
leaves that can be almost round in some forms. The autumn colour is
a combination of bright red and yellow on a green background. The Fernleaf
Full-moon Maple, 'Aconitifolium', has very finely divided foliage reminiscent
of aconite leaves. The Golden Full-moon Maple (Acer japonicum var. aureum)
has rounded lime green spring leaves that become yellow as they mature
then turn golden and red in autumn. It is now more properly known as
Acer shirasawanum 'Aureum'. Acer palmatum
Japanese
Maple
Everyone
knows the beautiful Japanese maple with its seemingly endless range
of cultivars in every imaginable leaf shape and colour. Originally found
in Japan and Korea, it has been highly refined and developed by both
Japanese and Western gardeners. Regardless of its preference for cool,
humid conditions and a tendency to develop die-back, the Japanese maple
is nearly everyone's favourite small tree. The autumn foliage colour
of the purple- or red-leaved forms is usually just a more intense shade
of the summer colour, while those with green to pale gold leaves develop
shades of red, orange, gold and yellow. For autumn colour consider:
'Bloodgood', deep red; 'Aureum', deep gold; 'Beni Kagami', bright red;
'Hessei', red; 'Dissectum', bright orange; 'Dissectum Atropurpureum',
red; 'Linearilobum Atropurpureum', bronze; and 'Linearilobum Rubrum'
bright red. Acer platanoides
Norway
Maple
Found
from northern Europe to the Caucasus, the Norway maple is a strong-trunked,
round-headed tree to 30 m tall, with 5-lobed leaves up to 18 cm wide.
While the species has deep green leaves that rarely develop much colour
before turning brown and falling, some of the cultivars offer brighter
hues. 'Schwedleri', in particular, is a purple-green form that often
reddens intensely in autumn. 'Goldsworth Purple' can develop similar
tones. Acer rubrum
Red,
Scarlet or Swamp Maple
Native
to the eastern United States, this fast-growing 20 m tall tree has 3-5-lobed
leaves up to 10 cm wide that colour well in the autumn, developing intense
red and gold tones. This species is occasionally tapped for its syrup.
'Columnare' is a broadly columnar cultivar, not to be confused with
A. platanoides 'Columnare'. 'Red Sunset' has particularly good autumn
foliage. Acer saccharinum
Silver
Maple
Often
confused with the sugar maple because of their similar botanical names,
the Silver Maple is found over much of eastern North America, grows
quickly to around 40m tall and has an open crown. Its large leaves have
silvery undersides and are red, orange or gold in autumn. Acer saccharum
Sugar
Maple
This species,
widespread in North America, is both a timber tree and the source of
maple syrup, which makes it the most commercially important maple. As
it was the pattern for the maple leaf on the Canadian flag you might
think it would have red autumn leaves. Well, sometimes it does, but
it is very variable; sometimes red, other years orange, gold or combinations
of colours. Acer tataricum
Tatarian
Maple
Found
over much of the temperate northern hemisphere outside Europe, this
10m tall tree has rounded, toothed leaves that turn vivid shades of
yellow, orange and red in autumn. The Amur Maple (Acer tataricum ssp.
ginnala), from Siberia, northern China and northern Japan, is shrubby,
extremely tolerant of wind and cold and has red autumn foliage. It used
to be classified as Acer ginnala, and is often still sold under that
name. Cultivation tips
Except
for a few species, maples are generally very hardy. They prefer a deep,
well-drained, fertile soil with plenty of humus. For the best autumn
tones plant in a sunny position but try to provide good wind protection,
at least for young plants and Japanese maples, or the foliage may burn
or fall before it has a chance to colour well.
Maples
respond well to light winter pruning when young and are best shaped
to a fairly round crown on a sturdy trunk. Some, such as Acer palmatum,
tend to be fairly shrubby with low forking and these are best left to
develop naturally. Even though the exact autumn shades are difficult
to predict and will vary from year to year, you won't go far wrong with
maples. They're beautiful enough in any season to forgive them their
vagaries. Did you know?
It
takes around 43 litres of Acer saccharum sap to produce 1 litre of maple
syrup. A good sized sugar maple yields around 50 litres of sap and during
the processing into syrup the sugar concentration rises from 2% to 66%.
No wonder it's so sweet, but what a flavour!
---
By
Author: Geoff Bryant
I am a garden book author and horticultural photographer based in Christchurch,
New Zealand. I run a stock photo library called Country, Farm and Garden
(http://www.cfgphoto.com).
This article may be re-published provided this information is published
with it and is clearly visible.
---
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