Acer palmatum Asahi Zuru - Japanese Maple

Acer palmatum 'Asahi-Zuru' is an absolutely charming Japanese maple. It is a small, hardy bush with remarkable variegated foliage from spring to autumn and with a beautiful rose and white striated bark. Coloured green and white-cream throughout the summer, often enhanced with pink, its beautiful variegation takes on a more red and orange-yellow hue with the first cold weather. This variety with a dense and slightly upright habit will easily find its place in all shaded areas of the garden, in non-calcareous and moist soil. Placed in a carefully chosen large pot, this elegant and bright bush will become the focal point of a terrace, always in partial shade.

Originally from eastern China, Korea, and Japan, Acer palmatum is the origin of a multitude of horticultural varieties that vie for beauty. The Japanese palmate maple belongs to the Sapindaceae family. It is relatively hardy but only tolerates limestone-free soils. The 'Asahi-zuru' cultivar, which grows rather quickly, eventually takes on a bushy and flexible habit that is taller than it is wide. At maturity, it will reach an average height of 3.5 m (11.5 ft) and a spread of 1.75 m (5.7 ft), depending on how it is pruned. This small tree with almost horizontal and drooping branches at their ends has an original bark, striated with pink and white when young. It develops deciduous leaves, deeply lobed and palmate in shape. In this variety, the tender green foliage variegated with white-cream will take on more or less pink tints depending on the nature of the soil and the exposure. The leaves are opposite, deeply cut into 5 long triangular and pointed lobes, with a dentate edge. Discreet flowering, often hidden by the foliage, takes place in May-June. The flowers, grouped in small clusters, sometimes produce winged fruits called samaras, measuring 3 cm (1.2 in) long.

Acer palmatum 'Asahi-zuru' grows best in acidic, moist, fertile, loose, and well-drained soil, in a partially shaded position sheltered from cold and dry winds. Compact but sculptural and colourful, it is suitable for small Japanese, exotic, or contemporary gardens, for ornamenting terraces and patios, as well as for large shaded rockeries. Azaleas, pieris, rhododendrons, wild camellias, and heathers will be its most beautiful companions. It can be trained into a magnificent flat bonsai. Combine several varieties of Japanese maples to vary the colours and structures of the foliage; the effect is always dazzling at the end of the season.