Acer palmatum Sangokaku - Japanese Maple

Acer palmatum 'Sangokaku' (also known as Senkaki) is an interesting Japanese maple all year round, especially when winter reveals the coral red bark of its young branches. From spring to summer, its deeply cut foliage is the seat of a colour dance ranging from spring green-yellow-pink to summer green, before the autumnal blaze in red-pink-orange that ends in a golden yellow glow. This medium-sized variety, with a dense and rounded habit, will suit a small garden, in humus-rich and moist soil. Placed in a carefully chosen large pot, this unique and colourful bush will become the focal point of the terrace, even in the shade.

Originally from eastern China, Korea, and Japan, Acer palmatum is the origin of numerous horticultural varieties that compete in beauty. The Japanese palmate maple belongs to the Sapindaceae family. It is relatively hardy but cannot tolerate dry and cold winds and excessive limestone in the soil. The rather slow-growing 'Sangokaku' cultivar takes on a bushy and rounded habit over time, taller than wide, and is well-branched from the base. At maturity, it will reach an average height of 3 m (9.8 ft) and a spread of 1.75 m (5.7 ft) in open ground, slightly less if grown in a pot. This small tree has particularly beautiful bark, ranging in colour from pink to coral red when less than 2 years old. It develops deciduous leaves, deeply cut in the shape of palm leaves. In this variety, the spring foliage initially appears tender green tinged with yellow and pink, turns green in summer and then takes on beautiful autumn colours. The leaves are opposite, cut into 7 lanceolate and pointed lobes, with toothed edges and pointed tips. Discreet red flowers, often hidden by the foliage, bloom in May-June. The flowers, grouped in small clusters, sometimes produce a few winged fruits called samaras, 3 cm (1.2 in) long.

Acer palmatum 'Sangokaku' grows in non-limestone, moist, fertile, and well-drained soil, in all exposures, but must be 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 form a magnificent bonsai in the 'Chokkan' style (upright trunk bonsai), 'Yose-Ue' (forest bonsai), or 'Bonkei' (landscape on a tray). Combine several varieties of Japanese maples to vary the colours and structures of the foliage, and plant small evergreen ground cover plants at their base; the effect is always dazzling at the end of the season.