Downy Japanese-maple

In a competiton to find the most beautiful autimn colour, this Acer would do well.

We owe many of the original descriptions of the maples native to Japan to Philipp Franz von Siebold. In 1845 he published Flora Japonicae Familiae Naturales in which he describes several maples.

In Japan 'momijigari' roughly translates as 'maple hunting', a ritual outing to the mountains during the period when the maple trees are in their autumn colour. Maple symbolizes the approaching autumn so planting a Japanese maple tree in the garden is a sign that autumn is welcome as a friend.

In Japan maple wood is used for wood turning and to make toys and musical instruments.

Ornamental cherry, pine and Acer trees are used as the foundation planting in Japanese garden art. A temple garden without at least one of these three types of trees is unthinkable. In Asian art the palmate leaves of the Japanese maple are frequently seen in combination with deer because they both symbolise autumn.