We depend on donations from users of our database of over 8000 edible and useful plants to keep making it available free of charge and to further extend and improve it. In recent months donations are down, and we are spending more than we receive. Please give what you can to keep PFAF properly funded. More >>>

Follow Us:

 

Acer palmatum - Thunb.

Common Name Japanese Maple
Family Aceraceae
USDA hardiness 6-8
Known Hazards None known
Habitats Woods and thickets in a wide range of soils and exposures in lowland and mountains to 3000 metres in C. and S. Japan[58, 200].
Range E. Asia - Japan
Edibility Rating    (2 of 5)
Other Uses    (1 of 5)
Weed Potential No
Medicinal Rating    (0 of 5)
Care (info)
Fully Hardy Moist Soil Semi-shade Full sun
Acer palmatum Japanese Maple


Acer palmatum Japanese Maple

 

Translate this page:

Summary

Bloom Color: Red. Main Bloom Time: Early spring, Late spring, Mid spring.Form: Rounded, Upright or erect, Vase.


Physical Characteristics

 icon of manicon of lolypop
Acer palmatum is a deciduous Tree growing to 8 m (26ft) by 6 m (19ft) at a slow rate.
See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 5 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from May to June. The species is monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant).
Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, prefers well-drained soil and can grow in heavy clay soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in very acid soils.
It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.

UK Hardiness Map US Hardiness Map

Synonyms

A. polymorphum

Habitats

Woodland Garden Secondary; Dappled Shade; Shady Edge;

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Leaves  Sap
Edible Uses:

The sap contains a certain amount of sugar and can either be used as a drink, or can be concentrated into a syrup by boiling off the water[105, 177, 183]. The syrup is used as a sweetener on many foods. The concentration of sugar is considerably lower than in the sugar maples (A. saccharum). The tree trunk is tapped in the early spring, the sap flowing better on warm sunny days following a frost. The best sap production comes from cold-winter areas with continental climates. Leaves - cooked[105, 177, 179]. We have eaten nicer leaves[K].

References   More on Edible Uses

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.


None known

References   More on Medicinal Uses

Now available: PLANTS FOR YOUR FOOD FOREST: 500 Plants for Temperate Food Forests and Permaculture Gardens.

An important new book from PFAF. It focuses on the attributes of plants suitable for food forests, what each can contribute to a food forest ecosystem, including carbon sequestration, and the kinds of foods they yield. The book suggests that community and small-scale food forests can provide a real alternative to intensive industrialised agriculture, and help to combat the many inter-related environmental crises that threaten the very future of life on Earth.

Read More

FOOD FOREST PLANTS

Other Uses

Preservative

The leaves are packed around apples, rootcrops etc to help preserve them[18, 20].

Special Uses

References   More on Other Uses

Cultivation details

Landscape Uses:Border, Pest tolerant, Rock garden, Standard, Specimen, Woodland garden. Of easy cultivation, it succeeds in most soils preferring a good moist well-drained soil on the acid side and partial shade[11, 182]. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Chlorosis can sometimes develop as a result of iron deficiency when the plants are grown in alkaline soils, but in general maples are not fussy as to soil pH. Requires some shelter in the cooler areas of Britain and protection from cold drying winds[1]. Plants are hardy to about -25°c[184], but spring growth is subject to damage by late frosts[11]. A very ornamental tree[1], it is a polymorphic species[1] and there are many named varieties[11, 182]. Grows well with rhododendrons. Most maples are bad companion plants, inhibiting the growth of nearby plants[18, 20]. Special Features:Attractive foliage, Not North American native, Inconspicuous flowers or blooms.

References   Carbon Farming Information and Carbon Sequestration Information

Temperature Converter

Type a value in the Celsius field to convert the value to Fahrenheit:

Fahrenheit:

image

The PFAF Bookshop

Plants For A Future have a number of books available in paperback and digital form. Book titles include Edible Plants, Edible Perennials, Edible Trees, and Woodland Gardening. Our new book to be released soon is Edible Shrubs.

Shop Now

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame, it usually germinates in the following spring. Pre-soak stored seed for 24 hours and then stratify for 2 - 4 months at 1 - 8°c. It can be slow to germinate. The seed can be harvested 'green' (when it has fully developed but before it has dried and produced any germination inhibitors) and sown immediately. It should germinate in late winter. If the seed is harvested too soon it will produce very weak plants or no plants at all[80, 113]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on until they are 20cm or more tall before planting them out in their permanent positions. Layering, which takes about 12 months, is successful with most species in this genus. Cuttings of young shoots in June or July. The cuttings should have 2 - 3 pairs of leaves, plus one pair of buds at the base. Remove a very thin slice of bark at the base of the cutting, rooting is improved if a rooting hormone is used. The rooted cuttings must show new growth during the summer before being potted up otherwise they are unlikely to survive the winter. Only strong-growing cultivars succeed from cuttings, plants of the dissected or variegated cultivars will rarely grow into good plants.

Other Names

If available other names are mentioned here

Native Plant Search

Search over 900 plants ideal for food forests and permaculture gardens. Filter to search native plants to your area. The plants selected are the plants in our book 'Plants For Your Food Forest: 500 Plants for Temperate Food Forests and Permaculture Gardens, as well as plants chosen for our forthcoming related books for Tropical/Hot Wet Climates and Mediterranean/Hot Dry Climates. Native Plant Search

Found In

Countries where the plant has been found are listed here if the information is available

Weed Potential

Right plant wrong place. We are currently updating this section. Please note that a plant may be invasive in one area but may not in your area so it’s worth checking.

Conservation Status

IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants Status :

Related Plants
Latin NameCommon NameHabitHeightHardinessGrowthSoilShadeMoistureEdibleMedicinalOther
Acer acuminatum Tree6.0 5-9  LMHSNM102
Acer argutum Tree8.0 4-8  LMHSNM201
Acer caesium Tree15.0 5-9  LMHSNM013
Acer campestreField Maple, Hedge mapleTree15.0 4-8 FLMHSNM213
Acer carpinifoliumHornbeam MapleShrub10.0 4-7 SLMHSNM201
Acer circinatumVine MapleTree12.0 6-9 SLMHSNM212
Acer crataegifoliumHawthorn-Leaved MapleTree10.0 5-9  LMHSNM001
Acer distylum Tree15.0 6-9  LMHSNM201
Acer ginnalaAmur MapleTree10.0 3-8 FLMHSNM103
Acer glabrumRock Maple, Rocky Mountain maple, Douglas maple, Greene's maple, New Mexico maple, Torrey mapleTree9.0 3-8 SLMHSNM212
Acer interiusBox ElderTree20.0 -  LMHSNM201
Acer macrophyllumOregon Maple, Bigleaf maple, Oregon MapleTree30.0 5-9 FLMHSNM313
Acer monoMapleTree15.0 3-8 SLMHSNM212
Acer negundoBox ElderTree21.0 3-8 FLMHSNM313
Acer oblongum Tree9.0 6-9  LMHSNM003
Acer pectinatumMapleTree10.0 3-6 SLMHSNM002
Acer pensylvanicumMoosewood, Striped maple, Moosewood, Pennsylvania MapleTree4.5 3-7  LMHNM012
Acer platanoidesNorway Maple, Harlequin MapleTree21.0 3-7 FLMHSNM203
Acer pseudoplatanusSycamore, Great Maple, Scottish Maple, Planetree MapleTree30.0 4-7 FLMHSNM214
Acer rubrumRed Maple, Drummond's maple, Swamp MapleTree30.0 4-10 FLMHSNM313
Acer saccharinumSilver Maple, River Maple, Soft MapleTree30.0 3-9 FLMHSNM314
Acer saccharumSugar Maple, Florida Maple, Hard Maple, Rock MapleTree30.0 4-8 SLMHSNM424
Acer saccharum grandidentatumBig-Tooth Maple, Canyon Maple, Rocky Mountain Sugar MapleTree12.0 5-8  LMHSNM403
Acer saccharum nigrumBlack MapleTree25.0 4-6 SLMHSNM412
Acer spicatumMountain MapleTree10.0 3-6 SLMHNM223
Acer sterculiaceum Tree6.0 7-10  LMHSNM002
Acer tataricumTatarian MapleTree9.0 3-7 MLMHSNM201
Acer truncatumShantung Maple, Purpleblow MapleTree8.0 3-8 SLMHSNM101
Acer ukurunduense caudatum Tree20.0 - SLMHSNM103
12

Growth: S = slow M = medium F = fast. Soil: L = light (sandy) M = medium H = heavy (clay). pH: A = acid N = neutral B = basic (alkaline). Shade: F = full shade S = semi-shade N = no shade. Moisture: D = dry M = Moist We = wet Wa = water.

 

Print Friendly and PDF

Expert comment

Author

Thunb.

Botanical References

1158200

Links / References

For a list of references used on this page please go here

Readers comment

David Beaulieu   Tue Jan 10 2006

Japanese Maple Trees Information for homeowners about growing Japanese maple trees.

John geraghty   Wed Jan 25 2006

The Bodwen Nursery describes a wide range of cultivars

guy Maillot   Mon Jan 1 2007

The best book on time for japanese maple : BOOK FOR MAPLES Y MASAYOSHI 400 pages full color photography.

maillot erable more than 700 japanese maple cultivars on line

Add a comment

If you have important information about this plant that may help other users please add a comment or link below. Only comments or links that are felt to be directly relevant to a plant will be included. If you think a comment/link or information contained on this page is inaccurate or misleading we would welcome your feedback at [email protected]. If you have questions about a plant please use the Forum on this website as we do not have the resources to answer questions ourselves.

* Please note: the comments by website users are not necessarily those held by PFAF and may give misleading or inaccurate information.

To leave a comment please Register or login here All comments need to be approved so will not appear immediately.

Subject : Acer palmatum  
© 2010, Plants For A Future. Plants For A Future is a charitable company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales. Charity No. 1057719, Company No. 3204567.