The first mentions of Japanese maples appeared at the beginning of the 17th century. At this time in Japan, maples were grown only in monastery gardens and parks of the nobility.
Gardeners have been searching the mountains for years and collecting varieties of this tree. About 250 varieties of Japanese maple have been described.
Only in the middle of the 19th century. the plant came to Europe, to Great Britain. At the beginning of the twentieth century. it was almost forgotten; during the Second World War, many valuable varieties disappeared without a trace.
Only in the 60s of the last century maples came back into fashion and resumed their victorious march from Japan to Europe and America, and scientists with great enthusiasm began to develop new varieties.
Japanese maple, or palmate ( Acer palmatum) is a perennial, slow-growing deciduous shrub or tree.
Today there are more than 150 species.
The size of a tree or bush depends on the type and variety of plant and reaches 2-10 m in height.
The leaves are small, carved. The color of the leaves comes in all shades of green, burgundy, red, yellow-orange and even pink.
The better the light, the more intense the shade of the leaves. The shape of the leaves resembles a fan or palm leaves in a smaller form.
Japanese maple flowers are small. After flowering, small winged fruits are formed on the plants.
It is better to buy maple in containers and plant it in the ground along with a lump of earth to preserve the thin and brittle roots of the plant.
Planting a container plant can be done at any time from early spring to late autumn.
It is very important to choose the right place for the maple on the site: it needs a well-lit area, but protected from midday rays (perhaps in the shade more tall tree), where there would be enough space for a wide umbrella crown, it is also important that at any time of the year one can admire the changing appearance of this beautiful tree.
We must also take into account that maple does not like strong winds or cold drafts.
Protection can be a solid fence or conifers, planted around the perimeter of the garden. They will help avoid the risk of damage to tender young maple leaves during late spring frosts.
Our advice:
Most garden soils are quite suitable for Japanese maples. The only exceptions are highly alkaline soils that are not sufficiently permeable to water. Moreover, areas with stagnant water or drying out in extreme heat are not suitable.
Frost resistance of Japanese maples is not the highest, but they tolerate the climate of Ukraine well. You just need to follow certain rules.
If the winter is very snowy, it is necessary to periodically carefully shake off heavy wet snow from thin maple branches so that they do not break.
At a young age, before the trunk is completely lignified, the maple is covered with agro-fabric for the winter. Before sheltering for the winter, you need to make sure that the soil around the trunk is sufficiently moist.
The root system of the palmate maple is superficial, so it needs watering.
The maple reacts to a lack of moisture, its excess, very hot direct rays of the sun or too strong a dry wind with dried tips of the leaves, and to more severe stress - by completely dropping the leaves. This reaction does not mean that the plant will die.
It is important to correctly and gradually remove it from this state (provide regular watering without stagnant water, shade the crown).
Our advice:
Under no circumstances should you add fertilizer to the soil during periods of stress - this can only worsen the situation. If you give your pet enough attention, the maple will quickly recover and, possibly, grow new leaves in the same year.
In addition to watering, mulching with bark is required, which protects the roots from drying out and does not allow weeds to grow.
Slow-growing Japanese maples practically do not need pruning, but it is used as a way of maintaining and shaping the crown. For example, if it is necessary to limit the growth of a plant, thin out a thickened crown, or emphasize the exquisite shape of a tree (bush).
Periodic thinning pruning helps optimal lighting and ventilation of the crown, helps prevent the maple from being damaged by fungal diseases and maintain its beautiful appearance.
As the plant ages, it needs rejuvenating pruning, in which old and damaged branches are removed. When doing this, you must follow some simple rules:
In order for maple plants to develop normally, they need fertilizing and it must be done correctly.
Our advice:
When planting Japanese maple, peat and compost are added to the soil; mineral fertilizers are not applied..
Maples planted in spring should be fertilized 4-5 weeks after planting the tree. And those planted throughout the growing season are fertilized 2-3 weeks after planting the tree in open ground.
If Japanese maple is planted in the fall, fertilizers are applied only in the spring of the following year.
Experienced gardeners know that it is better to feed the Japanese maple several times, but in small doses so as not to damage it. root system. And the last feeding is carried out no later than the second ten days of July, so that the tree has time to prepare for winter.
In spring, the plant awakens from hibernation and for intensive growth it needs a sufficient amount of nitrogen; in summer and autumn - potassium, which helps to better tolerate critical weather(summer drought and winter frosts).
Ksenia and Marjan SHWED
© Ogorodnik magazine
Photo: depositphotos.com
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Photo: pixabay.com
Maples are not only one of the most picturesque, but also the most variable trees. Despite the fact that these filigree beauties are found almost everywhere to the globe, the most famous of the maples today remain the species that symbolize the classic flora of the Land of the Rising Sun. They are related not only natural habitat, but also a unique play of colors, transparency of silhouettes and bewitching watercolors.
Japanese maples are species of maples united by origin: they all come from the alluring and mysterious Land of the Rising Sun. Endemics and theirs cultivars This group is very popular and is considered the most sought-after representatives of the genus, distinguished by its extraordinary picturesque silhouette and the beauty of carved foliage. These include:
– actually Japanese maple(Acer japonicum), which, due to its low frost resistance, can only be grown in the south or as a tub - very beautiful plant with deeply dissected graceful leaves and complex colors from green to cherry and burgundy ( decorative forms– large- and small-leaved, golden, aconite-leaved);
- became legendary Fan maple(Acer palmatum) and its many varieties;
– more rare, but no less beautiful Shirasawa Maple(Acer shirasawanum) up to only one and a half meters high, whose leaves with a small cross-section are distinguished by a larger plate width (classic varieties are colored yellow and orange, the ‘Aureum’ form has an original border along the edge of the leaves).
Almost all maples from Japan presented in the assortment of gardening centers are varietal plants, representing the assortment of fan maples and their hybrid and selective forms. The basic species of the other two eastern plants are much less common and, as a rule, are significantly inferior to the cultivated forms of fan maple in the ability to choose different colors and forms of cultivation. You can easily understand the names of individual varieties only if you speak Japanese: each name of a fan maple variety means key feature plants, which is sometimes reflected in the English transcript in the catalogs of large companies.
TO the best varieties Japanese maples rightfully include such fan maples as:
– openwork dark red “Bloodgood” with a delightful inky-black hue of leaves and bright fruits, capable of displaying an unusual dark color even in the shade; 
– bright scarlet maple “Beni Kava” with light leaves and a very bright scarlet shade of bark;
– the “Orangeola” variety, which also has a beautiful spring outfit of almost yellow young foliage;
– variety “Katsura” with reddish young leaves and bright “curly” green summer decoration, growing well in tubs;
– variety with scarlet autumn foliage “Osakazuki”;
– layered variety “Nicholsonii” from 2 to 3 meters high with an autumn crown showing all shades of brick red;
– multi-stemmed and very picturesque maples with powerful curved branches “Aconitifolium” with a flaming dark red outfit, decorated with rare flashes of speckled and brick;
– three to four-meter “Dissectum” with elongated conifer-like leaves and a bright orange-yellow color with rare splashes of other tones;
– a two-meter tall fan maple of the “Dissectum Garnet” variety with a very wide spreading crown, burgundy main and orange autumn color;
– a compact and denser squat one and a half meter variety “Mikawa yatsubusa” with thin needle-shaped leaf lobes and an outfit that transforms from acrylic green to orange-scarlet;
– a little more than a meter long spreading maple “Shino Buga Oka” with very deeply dissected leaves and a color change from bright green to yellow-orange.
Associations with watercolor landscapes created by the best masters arise in everyone who admires the autumn decoration of a maple tree. It is during the final deciduous season for all that maples turn into real dominants in any design: even the abundance of bright crowns of classic shrubs and trees in the neighborhood cannot overshadow the beauty of these unique plants. It was no coincidence that maples were called the main symbol autumn garden. These not so gigantic trees really seem to have absorbed all the best that they can offer to an admiring viewer. autumn nature. On cloudy and bad days they illuminate entire compositions around them, and on sunny days they glow from within and shimmer joyfully.
The decorative quality of maples lies in the amazing beauty of the details with the overall nobility and sophistication of silhouettes and shapes. After all, the contours of the maple, the shape of its lush crown and the graceful bends of the branches are no less filigree than the carved leaves. The lines of this plant are an impeccable example of picturesqueness, built on the harmony of naturalness and effectiveness. Japanese maples have a tiered or translucent crown, lush and lacy and almost weightless at the same time. And all the beauty of the mass of foliage only emphasizes the decorative nature of each individual leaf, divided into graceful pointed lobes.
The color palette only crowns, emphasizes and extols the beauty of the plants themselves, revealing their nobility and elegance. Incredible and rare tones of yellow, orange, red in autumn and in young leaves, and light shades of green or rich dark red in summer in maples are bright, picturesque and pure. Each maple, even representatives of the same variety, has a special and inimitable color. It directly depends on the weather conditions in each year, on the conditions of the place of growth and care. Even in seemingly similar neighboring gardens, two identical maples can turn different shades! It will take time for maples to show all their eccentricity: young plants rarely show all their coloristic talents and only in adulthood acquire relative constancy.
At the same time, the bright shades with which, as if by magic brush, painted Maple leaves nature, are distinguished not only by their catchiness, but also by the effect of internal glow: the transparency of the crowns themselves makes each shade of the almost acrylic “maple” palette completely unique. As if they had absorbed sunlight maples in the garden have a truly magical effect: attracting admiring glances, they invariably become the center of everyone's attention.
Japanese maples, especially rare varieties, are quite expensive and valuable plants; they always and everywhere play the role of the main accents and important points eye attraction. They are placed only in such a way as to maximize the beauty of the plant itself. Maples Japanese varieties They are always planted in the best locations in the garden, near the most advantageous and structurally important objects. Most often they can be found near a terrace or pond, in front gardens, rock gardens, rock gardens and rock gardens, near a large recreation area or in a landscape group that enlivens large spaces lawns. Such maples are not afraid of solo parties or the proximity of other plants.
Finding companions for maples is not an easy task. Such stars of any landscape need worthy accompaniment - bright, but still less flashy than the woody ones themselves, corresponding to the “level” of maples in texture, palette, and luxury of details.
One of the typical landscapes of the Land of the Rising Sun is a quiet and secluded corner for relaxation under the canopy of a maple tree, the beauty of which is “supported” by cushions of blooming chrysanthemums. A laconic, discreet, but surprisingly picturesque duo today remains an ideal example of the selection of classic companions for the design of any garden. Also looking very good under Japanese maples is a rootstock made from epimedium or hakonechloa, ferns, Volzhanka, shady sedge and (especially deciduous varieties, which also explode in the fall with bright fireworks of leaf transformation). You can always limit yourself to a minimalist design: decorative stone chips in the tree trunk area and balancing the crown with one or two plants or large boulders around the perimeter. Of the large – equal – partners, maples are best combined with representatives of the conifer family.
The undoubted advantage of maples native to Japan is their ability to grow even in modest conditions. They will take root in poor and insufficiently high-quality soils without any particular difficulties, provided that the lack nutrients will be replenished with at least occasional feedings mineral mixtures with prolonged exposure. They carry out such feeding in early spring, as an adaptation and growth-enhancing measure. If maples are grown in a tub, the soil should be rich in organic matter and of very high quality. It is no coincidence that Japanese maples are often used to decorate ponds: they grow well in moist, but not soggy soils and fresh garden soils.
All Japanese maples are able to adapt to any lighting without losing color: dark red ones - including shade, and the rest - within partial shade and diffuse bright lighting. All maples of Japanese origin are not afraid of drafts.
Picturesque plants have become famous precisely for their natural silhouettes, so pruning will not burden the care of the maples growing on the site. Only in the first four years of cultivation in the spring can you slightly adjust the crown, but otherwise pruning comes down to breaking out dry branches at a time when the maple is already dormant.
During the dry season, it is better to water Japanese maples additionally. It is enough to carry out maintenance procedures once a month, using about 15 liters of water per plant. For tub maples, maintain constant light moisture in the substrate. Another mandatory component of care is mulching. trunk circle any available materials(layer – from 3 to 5 cm).
InfoMomiji (紅葉)
Japanese maple (Ácer japónicum) is a species of perennial woody deciduous plant of the genus Acer, native to Japan in Honshū, Hokkaidō, Kyūshū, and also in southern Korea.
Japanese maples Momiji (紅葉) - exceptionally spectacular, ornamental trees and shrubs. Even in winter, these deciduous plants captivate the eye with their unusual shape of a bare crown, reminiscent of a mushroom or umbrella, and many thin weeping branches. However, the beauty of Japanese maples peaks in autumn, when their foliage turns vibrant, almost stunning colors.
Names in other languages: English. Downy Japanese Maple, Fullmoon Maple, Fin. Hokkaidonvaahtera, fr. érable du Japon, Japanese. ハウチワカエデ・羽団扇楓 (hauchiwa kaede).
The maple genus (Acer) consists of approximately 110 species of deciduous (less commonly evergreen) trees and shrubs that grow naturally in the moist forests of Europe, northern and central America and Asia.
We are talking only about a certain category of maples, which are usually called Japanese (they come from Japan and Korea). This group includes only two species: Japanese maple (A. japonicum) and mountain maple (A. palmatum) with its popular “fan” variety Dissectum, which has dissected, feathery leaves resembling a lace fan.
The maple was first described in 1784 by Murray based on the unpublished work of Thunberg. Since then, many synonyms have appeared in the literature, the most common being Acer circumlobatum Maxim (1867). Its identity as Acer japonicum was shown by Koizumi in 1911.
Japanese maples began their victorious march in European garden culture back in the 1600s, and by 1882, 202 varieties were already known in Britain. Currently, garden centers offer several hundred varieties of Japanese maples, which differ primarily in the color of their leaves, which are especially impressive in the fall, when the maples change color dramatically.
The size of Japanese maples depends on the variety: Japanese and palmate maples can reach 8 m in height, while varieties with dissected foliage usually do not exceed 2 m (in rare cases, 4 m at about 25 years of age). The latter often grow more in width than in height.
The leaves of Japanese maples are small and exclusively decorative. The color of the leaves comes in all shades of green, burgundy, red, yellow-orange and even pink and appears best in open, well-lit spaces.
Maple flowers are small, yellow-green or reddish, depending on the plant variety. After flowering ends, small paired winged fruits are formed on the plants. Some maples are also decorative with their bark.
An ancient Japanese legend about a wise emperor and maple leaves
Once upon a time, Japan was ruled by an emperor named Takakura no In. He loved nature, plants, and had a special weakness for maples. Their beauty fascinated, bewitched and pacified him. Takakura no In ordered his gardeners to plant the mountain on top of which his palace stood with every kind of maple tree they could find.
Many years passed, the maples grew and the emperor’s dream came true. The entire mountain was intricately covered with colorful maples that grew in the shape of mushrooms, flowerpots or waterfalls, and their elaborate leaves resembled hands, lace fans and even the strings of an old harp.
Every year, the emperor patiently waited for the onset of autumn, when the foliage on his maples acquired particularly vibrant colors. Putting aside all his important government affairs, Takakura no In came to the mountain palace to admire the carpet of colorful maple leaves on the ground.
One cold autumn day, a new, very diligent gardener was working on the mountain, who knew nothing about the emperor's passion. Trying to make a good impression on the owner, the gardener and his family members raked literally all the fallen maple leaves from the ground and made a huge fire from them, around which they settled down for the night. And in the morning, the courtiers, seeing bare maples, blackening earth and ashes on the mountain, began to seriously fear for the life of the new gardener.
At this time, Takakura no In alone climbed to the top of the mountain to enjoy the long-awaited beauty. Instead of a multi-colored tapestry of leaves, his eyes met a dull sight of black earth and cooled ashes, around which the gardener's family slept peacefully. The Emperor understood everything. Contrary to the samurai's fears, a soft, kind smile suddenly lit up his face.
Takakura no In returned to the palace and wrote a poem about the special gift that maple leaves have: they can not only pacify our souls with their exquisite beauty, but also warm our mortal bodies with their warmth.
IN natural environment Japanese maples grow as undergrowth, so they are accustomed to a high humus content in the soil, partial shade, and a more or less constant level of humidity. Japanese maples will grow in any garden if the conditions are right for these plants.
Most garden soils are quite suitable for Japanese maples, with the only exceptions being highly alkaline soils, as well as places with poor permeability and standing water, or completely drying out in the heat.
Another danger facing Japanese maples is the late spring frosts, which can damage tender young leaves. Although, as already mentioned, the color of Japanese maples appears better in open spaces with plenty of light, when choosing a place for planting, you should be wary of direct hot sun during the midday hours. Varieties with bicolored or edged leaves are especially vulnerable to the scorching sun; they must be planted in semi-shaded areas or places with sparse light.
Japanese maples are not affected by diseases and pests if grown in the right conditions. Weakened plants can be attacked by aphids, weevils and scale insects, as well as fungal infections.
Japanese maples combine well with each other. You can create a whole garden of Japanese maples by collecting plants of suitable sizes, shapes and colors together. You can go further and create an entire Japanese garden by planting traditional Japanese shrubs and trees in a special area: azaleas, rhododendrons, camellias, kerias, magnolias, pieris, hydrangeas, witch hazels, stewartias, skimmias, mahonias and maples.
Japanese maples are traditionally planted next to perennials: hostas, ornamental grasses (whose thin, straight stems create a wonderful contrast with the horizontal style of maples), low ferns and flat, wide clumps of spring and autumn bulbs.
Japanese maples look great in rock gardens, near water, in light forest belts, in shrub borders and mixed gardens. Japanese maples are used to form topiari and bonsai.
There are several subspecies that differ slightly in the shape and degree of pubescence of the lionfish and leaves; There are many cultivars used in ornamental gardening.
In culture, it is easily propagated by seeds or grafting onto palm maple.
Japanese maples are rightfully considered the most decorative and spectacular trees. In summer and autumn they fascinate with the beauty of their leaves, and in winter with the unusual structure of the crown, with a great many thin branches.
Japanese maples include palm maple (Acer palmatum), fan maple (Dissectum), and Japanese maple (Acer japonicum), as well as numerous varieties bred on their basis by breeders.
As the name suggests, Japanese maples are native to the Land of the Rising Sun. All of them are distinguished by decorative carved leaves of purple and bright orange colors and shades, and a beautiful crown structure.
The sizes of Japanese maples, depending on the type, range from 2-3 meters to 8 meters in height. Palm maples are taller, while fan maples are shorter. The flowers are no different large sizes, have a yellow-green or red color, which depends on the variety. The flowers produce lionfish seeds, which are scattered over long distances, growing into new trees. Many Japanese maples are distinguished by their decorative crown and bark. Due to these features, the tree becomes a real decoration of the garden or greenhouse.
In addition to the basic varieties, there are many hybrid forms bred in Japan. Each of these forms has a name that conveys the peculiarity of the variety; the main thing is to understand them correctly.
In the wild, Japanese maple grows well in soil rich in humus and with a slightly acidic reaction. Prefers semi-shady places and stable humidity levels.
Japanese maple does not like highly alkaline soils, places with stagnant moisture and poor water permeability. However, drying out and scorching rays daylight also has a bad effect on the decorative appearance of its leaves. Japanese maple varieties with two-colored or edged leaves suffer more than others from direct sunlight; such varieties should be planted in partial shade.
The best thing decorative properties These plants appear in abundant, diffused light. In a park or garden, they will feel good in places where there is sun in the morning and evening, and where there is no sun during the day. Choosing a place to plant maple is made easier by the fact that it is not afraid of drafts.
It must be remembered that Japanese maples are heat-loving plants and do not tolerate spring frosts that damage young leaves. Due to low frost resistance in central Russia, trees need to be wrapped with covering material for the winter, for example, garden fleece.
In areas with a mild climate in winter, maple branches must be freed from adhering wet snow to protect them from damage; the fan maple suffers especially badly from snow. But when the branches are covered with ice after “hot rain” or a thaw, you should not touch them - they will break.
In summer, especially during drought, maples need to be watered abundantly and often, and the leaves should be sprayed in the morning or evening. In conditions of a lack or excess of moisture, under the influence of a dry and hot wind, under the scorching rays of the sun, the tree will experience real stress, which will make itself felt by drying out the tips of the leaves and dropping the leaves.
If this happens, they begin to water the maple more often, spray it, and stop fertilizing. These measures will help bring it back to life, and new leaves will appear on it even in summer.
In spring and autumn, the soil around the trunk should be mulched with leaf humus, tree bark, garden compost, and wood chips. Mulching is of great importance for a tree - protection from soil drying out in summer, protection of roots from freezing in winter, additional fertilizer all year round.
To prevent the trunk from rotting, organic materials used for mulching should not be poured next to it.
In the spring, fertilizer granules are added to the soil under the tree, and only then it is covered with mulch from humus or compost, and sprinkled with colored wood chips on top. Spring feeding Slow-acting fertilizers will last the maple for the whole year; nitrogenous fertilizers are strictly contraindicated for it.
If the maple grows on poor soil, it must be fed 2 times a year with long-acting minerals - in spring and summer.
As for pruning, it is carried out only on mature and old thickened trees that have lost their former decorative effect. They need pruning in order to make the crown more transparent, lighter, and open to air and sunlight - these measures will be an excellent prevention of fungal diseases. Pruning should be done during the dormant period - early spring or late autumn when there are no leaves on the tree.
Young maples do not need pruning, the trees grow very slowly, and their beautiful crown forms naturally.
Japanese maple reproduces by seeds both in natural conditions and in culture. The seeds must be fresh; they are collected as they ripen, most often in October.
For stratification, seeds are placed in dry sand and taken to a cool place. In the spring, they are sown in a container, pre-treated with growth stimulating agents.
Over the summer, the seedlings do not grow too much, but already in this state it is possible to separate strong seedlings from weak ones. The weak ones are removed, and the strong ones are sent to a cool room with above-zero temperatures for the winter. In the spring they are transplanted into tubs or pots, and when they reach a height of 30 centimeters or more, they are planted in open ground, in a tub or in a greenhouse on permanent place. If the maple is to grow in a tub, the soil in it should be rich in organic fertilizers.
Another type of propagation of Japanese maples is grafting cuttings onto a strong rootstock of a similar species, for example, palmate maple.
In regions with cold climates, Japanese maples are grown in tubs, which are brought into a cool room for the winter. Growing maples in a tub provides another advantage - the ability to move them, if necessary, into the shade, into the sun or to a place protected from wind, hail and rain.
Since the trees are low-growing, in Japan the tubs with them are placed on a stand so that their remarkable beauty is better visible.
Needless to say, the ornamental tree goes well with other garden inhabitants - shrubs, trees, flowers, ornamental grasses. The tree will decorate any corner of the garden - a pond, a rock garden, a Japanese stone garden.
Maples, whose leaves become most decorative in the fall, will look good next to autumn flowers- chrysanthemums, oaks, asters. They can be planted next to a tree to finally admire the colorful and bright beauty of the autumn garden.
Low-growing evergreen shrubs after pruning, for example, boxwood, juniper, and ornamental conifers, will be good neighbors for Japanese maples.
As a last resort, you can do without flowers and shrubs - simply fill the ground around with painted small gravel or wood chips.
For bonsai connoisseurs, maple, sakura and mountain pine are real symbols of this ancient art. But if evergreen pine needles make the tree’s appearance unchanged throughout the year, sakura is especially attractive in the spring, during flowering, then maple is a bright palette of autumn with unusual openwork foliage.
Maples are distributed throughout the northern hemisphere. Bonsai culture is traditionally dominated by Far Eastern, Chinese and Japanese varieties, but the growing popularity of this area of plant growing has made it possible to include varieties from Europe, the Caucasus and the North American continent in the list of species.
Particularly valued are plants with small foliage and short internodes, which allow you to create miniatures that are unique in shape and harmonious, natural in appearance.
Among the species suitable for growing bonsai are Japanese and Norway maples, Montpelian, field and rock maples. Palm maple trees with intricately cut leaf blades are in particular demand. The leaves of this species remain red, contrastingly edged, light yellow or purple not only in autumn, but throughout the year. This species should not be confused with the red maple, also grown as a bonsai. Its five-fingered leaves gradually change their appearance and the appearance of the crown as a whole in autumn. From the USA and Canada, the ash-leaf maple, which is easy to shape, unpretentious and also has varieties with variegated or silver foliage, has come into the sphere of interest of bonsai connoisseurs.
It is not surprising that small trees with red, yellow or any other bright foliage are most attractive to gardeners. Therefore, unscrupulous sellers often “play” on this by offering blue maple seeds for bonsai. There is no need to believe empty promises. If shoots appear from such seeds, at best they will turn out to be an ordinary maple with green leaves. And although it is impossible to grow a blue maple, bonsai with purple, carmine, red or orange leaves– reality.
There are many examples of varieties used for red maple bonsai, however, due to the low chlorophyll content that supports the nutrition of the tree, such plants are weaker than their green counterparts and require special attention.
Decorative forms more often suffer from sunburn, frost and cold wind, and their brightness directly depends on the choice of location. In the shade, red, burgundy and crimson shades may disappear.
Another highlight of the Japanese maple bonsai is plants with strongly dissected leaves reminiscent of palm branches. These types look great in cascading, flowing compositions, but are not suitable for beginners due to their rather capricious nature and soreness.
And here dwarf varieties maple trees in bonsai are unpretentious and seem to help a person with their formation. They do not tend to grow upward, but form a dense crown covered with small foliage that preserves its natural appearance.
Maples feel good in middle lane Russia, but in bonsai form this tree suffers more from external influences and needs to carefully choose a place of residence.
The most common maples in bonsai, palmate and fan maples, can become sick and experience growth difficulties:
However, if we're talking about about the choice between light and shadow, it is better to expose the pot to the sun, which in the central part of the country will not cause serious harm. In the sun the tree forms more small leaves, which allows you to avoid removing buds and not weaken the plant. In addition, the colors of foliage in full sun are brighter and more attractive.
If in summer time, as in the photo, a maple bonsai is taken out into the open air, it needs to be protected from the wind, otherwise the plant with its root system cut off risks losing its balance and falling out of the shallow pot.
Maples, both in nature and at home at low temperatures, do not tolerate excessive air humidity and insufficient air flow fresh air. Under such conditions, bonsai is affected by harmful fungi that cause powdery mildew and anthracnose.
Watering is a mandatory and very important part of caring for a maple bonsai. In summer, the intensity and frequency are increased, and if necessary, careful sprinkling is used. In winter, when the leaves fall and the plant goes into hibernation, the need for moisture drops sharply.
In the spring, when the maple awakens, it is fed, and the presence of iron in the mixture is important for the maple. This is also taken into account when preparing the substrate. The soil for maple bonsai should be nutritious, aerated, with a neutral or slightly acidic reaction. In addition to traditional components, a clay substrate for bonsai is added to the soil, which provides anchorage for the root system and structures the earth mixture.
Replanting and replacing the container when growing maple bonsai coincides with pruning the roots, which is carried out every 2-3 years. In parallel with the formation, dead or damaged rhizomes and lumps of adhering soil are removed.
All types of this plant are easily propagated by cuttings and rooted layering. Seeds, which should be stratified before sowing, are also suitable for growing maple bonsai.
To do this, the seed is dropped into damp sphagnum, sand or sand, after which the container with the seeds is sent to the refrigerator. To prepare palm maple seeds, for example, 3–4 months in the vegetable compartment is sufficient. When warmed, the shell will certainly open, and friendly shoots will appear.
Hatched maple seeds for bonsai are transferred to a sand-peat mixture or planted in well-moistened peat tablets. In a greenhouse in the light, but not in the direct rays of the sun, the plant produces a pair of true leaves within a month.
When their number reaches 4-5, it is time to transfer the young maples into their own pots and begin forming a bonsai.
How to grow a maple bonsai without pruning and pinching the crown? This is impossible. These techniques, along with the formation of stems using wire, are an integral part of the ancient art.
Branches are pruned when up to five pairs of full-fledged leaves open on the shoot. Usually they are shortened by 2–4 leaves, and large leaf blades are plucked out separately, leaving their cuttings.
Over time, the cutting will wither and fall off, but too large leaves will be replaced by small ones, more appropriate for bonsai. In mid-summer, healthy trees with green foliage are defoliated or plucked out the growth buds, which will lead to:
This operation is not performed on red maples for bonsai because it can weaken the already sensitive plant.
It is better to carry out all procedures related to pruning not in the spring, when sap flow is active, but in the summer or autumn. The same applies artificial aging maples grown for bonsai. In the second half or at the end of the growing season, the wounds heal better and the tree recovers better.
