Hi, I wanted to ask some advice to find a Japanese maple that is red during this time of year (june-july). I have a small collection an none of my trees are red at the moment... I only have bright red colours during spring and then autumn... I spotted a bright red tree this afternoon ... I couldn't get closer for the picture as it is inside someone else's garden but I think it looks like a Japanese maple. Can anyone help me with some Japanese maples trees that got bright red around this time of the year ? Many thanks Dulce
Hi, The main factor in red JMs staying red during the summer is the amount of sun they get. In the shade, most will turn green, with a few notable exceptions, but even those go a more bronze colour. If shade is all you have, 'Pixie', or 'Garnet' for a dissectum both stay reasonably red in shade. Cheers, -E
Ohhh.. I understand..... I thought there might be some varieties that hold their colours through the hot season. Some of my maples that start bright red in the year and then turn green or brown. While some others start green and turn red in autumn... I was wondering about that tree in the picture that is bright red now... I thought there might be some varieties that have more chances to hold their bright colours in this time of the year. I appreciate your reply. Thanks a lot ☺️
Glad to try and help, though not sure I'm giving much! I can't see much of the tree in the picture. It's pretty bright, I wonder if it's already stressed and getting into its autumn cycle. Stress will bring on those autumn colour changes There are many JMs that leaf out red, but then quickly turn green, sun not withstanding. These don't belong in the Atropurpureum (red-leaved) Group. And there are certainly some that stay redder than others, even in decent sun, like 'Bloodgood' (well, rather purple), or Õ-kagami. HTH.
My Skeeter's Broom gets 3-4 hours pf sun in the morning and holds its red colour well. (June 16th and July 15th) Trompenburg is also a tree that can stay red long in full sun. Dark red.
Totally agree with the above comments that "redness" is very dependent on tree location and local conditions and to this I will add one more thing: It also varies year-to-year. Just like you, I have seen Japanese maples like this in my neighborhood that make me say "whoa I need a tree like that" only to see that the next few years it doesn't quite look as dramatic. And of course the same goes for my own tree collection. And I'll add a second thing: They can change as they age. I have a Peve starfish that was the absolute "reddest" JM I've ever had throughout the summer, for the first 4-5 years of its life. Now that it is about 12-13 years old, it is still very nice, but does not hold the red quite as well.
