Favorite Maple Cultivar?

[Dav4]

Sooooooo..... if we're talking bonsai material, I'll have to say it's a toss up between your vanilla A. palmatum seedling and A. buergerianum- you just can't beat their resilience and ability to develop under bonsai culture. I'm sure I'd love having an A.p 'deshojo' on my bench but I believe "ignorance is bliss" applies in this situation. I purchased a 'Corallinum' 12-13 years ago and brought it with me when I moved to GA 11 years ago... real glad I did, too!

 

[JudyB]

Is it a bonsai, or do you plan to make it a bonsai, or is ir potted or in your garden ?

I Have young "snake-bark maples" : Acer davidii, one from a friend with red young shoots, Acer cappilipes, and Acer rufinerve. It's a pity you live so far, I gave some away but I still have many left...

All these species have rather large leaves that can't be reduced as much as Acer palmatum 'Little Princess' or even the plain species of A. palmatum. I'd love to have a "snakebark" maple bonsai though, so I don't plan to trow them away - so far.

In any case, considering the size of the leaves, even if they are reduced to half their size, they could only be "large size bonsai".

12 years care and cultivation?...

I'll be (?) 77. Still young enough maybe

PS: I have to check, but I may also have one Acer rubescens which also has a white-striped bark.

It is a bonsai, in a very shallow pot, clump turtleback style. I have found that the leaves can be reduced somewhat. I've also noticed if you cut the buds before they open the edges do not brown and the leaves look pretty appropriately sized. This clump isn't large, but a medium size. I only have a few pics of this one, I had forgotten that it has also purple in the fall coloring. Here are last fall photos, and in a new pot from this spring. As you can see I did cut the buds in the spring. I should take new photos this fall, and show the bark better.

 

[Ohmy222]

I agree with all the above comments regarding the red maples in the corallinum group. (Chishio, deshojo, Beni Mako)
Another interesting one is Beni hime. Kind of looks like a combination of koto hime and deshojo.

I have had 2 Beni Hime and both died realitively quick. They tend to get a lot of fungal issues. Most hime maples do but this is this one is known for it. One of the few maples that that like it dry too. Do plan to try again. They pretty much have the smallest leaves of any maple, very small. There is one called Otaha that is supposedly a better version but I have never seen one.

 

[Ohmy222]

One of my favourite maple cultivar is "Tsuma gaki", which is never used as a bonsai.

I have one I am training but it is challenging. The leaves don't reduce as much as I would like and the internodes are long so it will have be bigger or planted to enjoy in the landscape.

 

[Deep Sea Diver]

Kotohime is a pretty darn small leaved maple too, and really busy with the smallest internodes I’ve seen to date.

Might stick these two in the ground for a couple years when I can figure out a spot where we won’t step on them accidentally!

Cheers
DSD sends

 

[AlainK]

Acer davidii, A. p. 'Tsuma gaki' : I should have written "that I've never seen used as bonsai".

 

[sdavis]

I am going with the BIgtooth Maple (Acer grandidentatum), native to the western US. Small leaves, very hardy, tolerates heat and drought, trunks up rapidly, great fall color, deep green in summer. Hard to find....

 

[penumbra]

I love Japanese maple for being maples first and bonsai second. I know this is heresy here but I would rather have a well maintained collection of maples in the ground than in the bonsai pot. I do have both. A large number of my maples are less suitable for bonsai than the regular bonsai picks.
In any regard, I am much too fickle to narrow my favorites done to fewer than a dozen at best.
BTW, I do love choices made in this post and really love the picts.

 

[Mapleminx]

I love Japanese maple for being maples first and bonsai second. I know this is heresy here but I would rather have a well maintained collection of maples in the ground than in the bonsai pot. I do have both. A large number of my maples are less suitable for bonsai than the regular bonsai picks.
In any regard, I am much too fickle to narrow my favorites done to fewer than a dozen at best.
BTW, I do love choices made in this post and really love the picts.

I’d agree with that, there are some very pretty cultivars that are beautiful in their own right even if they are not suitable for Bonsai.
One of my favorite maples is Acer Palmatum Red Dragon especially it’s spring foliage. No idea if that would ever be any good as a Bonsai as I’ve never seen one “converted”. I might try it out one day maybe as a large bonsai in case the leaves don’t reduce much. Also love the full moon maples but those leaves are just too large for anything so for me it’s a standard ornamental tree.

As for Bonsai suitable I’d say Corallinum, Deshojo, Katsura, Arakawa and even Orange Dream drop into the first bunch that springs to mind but there really are just far too many to pick favorites. I’d be here for days trying to narrow it down.

 

[Mapleminx]

Another I’ve been digging for a while but have not found an affordable starter material is the ‘Ice Dragon’ Acer Pseudosieboldianum hybrid also known as a Jack Frost Maple. I geek out over hybrid growers and this one has gorgeous fall colors that is hardy to -30 F

View attachment 331645

That is a gorgeous color. Do love a good laceleaf.

 

[AlainK]

BIgtooth Maple (Acer grandidentatum), native to the western US. Small leaves,

A new species I've discovered. I did some search and found out it was consedered to be a subspecies of Acer saccharum but is now listed as a full species.

From your photos, it looks more like Acer campestre withe red coloured leaves in Autumn than Acer saccharinum. Thanks for the info.

 

[Shibui]

For bonsai generic seedlings are far better for me. Many named varieties do have great features - leaf color or shape, spring color or autumn color but all the ones I have tried have problems as bonsai - long internodes, large leaves, very slow growth, etc.
I keep the named varieties for landscape trees and develop seedlings for bonsai.

 

[JudyB]

For bonsai generic seedlings are far better for me. Many named varieties do have great features - leaf color or shape, spring color or autumn color but all the ones I have tried have problems as bonsai - long internodes, large leaves, very slow growth, etc.
I keep the named varieties for landscape trees and develop seedlings for bonsai.

I agree that the straight varieties make for easier bonsai cultivation. But I do love full moon for their summer color... I had one long ago and found that keeping it out of wind was a thing it needed.

 

[ajm55555]

Definitely Deshojo is #1.
<-- Specimen in May

 

[RKatzin]

I'm very fond of Kagiri nishiki for its constant color display and interesting variation of leaf formation. Of the cultivars I have I must say Glowing Embers is closest to my favorite all around maple. Following closely is my Hupps dwarf, just because I don't know anyone else that has one. Got to make mention of Shishigashira, just love this tree! If I had to choose only one, I'd walk away with a Sangu Kaku, hands down, no questions asked!

 

[Driftwood]

As a refine / finish bonsai I'll like shishigashira (a real pain to develop though), in general for me at the moment is seigen but to work with / grateful regular mountain palmatum is best.

 

[Canada Bonsai]

My top 3 are Beni Chidori, Deshojo, Arakawa

I also love working with Yves' Select (see attached), which is a well-known cultivar in Quebec and Ontario. This upright palmatum was first discovered by Yves from Bonsai ENR in southern Quebec. It's vigor is remarkable, as well as its leaf shape!

 

[LanceMac10]

Let's see some photos folks?

 

[AlainK]

I also love working with Yves' Select (see attached), which is a well-known cultivar in Quebec and Ontario

I can't find any reference to "Yves's Select" on the web. Any links ?

 

[AlainK]

Hybrids or "mutants" from cultivars can sometimes be interesting.

I have this one which is an air-layer from a tree grown from seeds (most probably either a green, or red dissectum). The bonsai itself deserves something like 8/20, or C- if you like, but the leaves are interesting I think (Feb. 2017, then a few days ago):



I still have the mother-tree, a multi-trunk about 60 cm tall (2 feet) and I'm planning to take more air-layers next year.

I let it grow freely this year, especially since one of the branches on the right is an approach graft (photo nr. 3). Another one I will repot in a much larger pot/container next spring...