I don't know what part of MO you are in but some of the alledgedly zone 6 areas have really bad winters and it's hotter than heck in the summer IE columbia where my sis lives is ...their winters are not greatly differnt than mine. Hopefully your area is protected but if you containerize them you can bring 'em in a unheated garage for the winter...and move to shade as needed..Your question is a bit encyclpedic but #1 you need to get the right container mix if you go that way #2 you will have better luck ( in general) with an older 3 or3+ year tree NOT EBay 1/2 year graft especially if you plant out... the established root system will help and they can be had for not that much more than your ebay manic driven bidders price ( email me directly at myersphcf@aol.com for some suggestions) #3 I would be a bit shy about the ghosts and orageola ( my 6 year old orangeola just croaked from this last winter ...none of my other 80+ did ...it could be systemic but with the root stock still viabler I am suspicious and I am a bit shy on the orangeola at this point) and if your just starting look for a bit hardier tree others can give you imput on some nice hardy ones. #4 FINALLY and most impotant if you don't already have it get JD Vertrees book Japanese Maples at amazon ...and READ it thoroughly ...before starting..David

Yes Vertrees book is definetely the way to go. I would be cautious about 'Tsuma beni'/'Tsuma gaki' as well as they are a bit tender if I'm not mistaken. I have a small 'tsuma gaki' and haven't had much trouble but it can't deal with the sun from what I've read. The 'Sango kaku', however, seems to be quite easy to grow.

If I were you, I would start with a few easy trees this year that are nevertheless quite spectacular IMO. I would suggest a 'red dragon' weeping laceleaf, a 'fireglow' or 'bloodgood' upright red (or similar variety), the 'sango kaku', and perhaps a yellow orange 'katsura' or 'orange dream'.

This is a good well rounded diverse group of trees that are not to difficult to take care of. Although depending on your winters the yellow oranges might be questionable.

I would also recommend looking for at least 3rd year trees after grafting, which should run you about 30 to 50 bucks depending on the cultivar. The small one year grafts usually have weak root systems and the grafts are often not completely healed (I have lost a couple during transit, and one during our mild winter this year).

Then next year (if you can wait that long) give some of the more tender trees a try. In my experience you can neglect some of the tough cultivars a bit and revive them if they get sickly, but the variegates and weaklings will die in a hurry if you're not careful.

Matts selections are all right on except the katsura which is a no-no for this area IMHO leafs out way too early and VERY suseptable to late spring frosts ...orange dream is also an early leafer but seems a bit less tender ...of all my trees the orange dream is the only one currently leafed out totally ....not a good sign...but it can suevive early frosts with some damage ...Katsura's probably NOT ...David

My first Japanese maples were fairly priced plants from the local garden center (from Hines Nursery)-Viridis, Garnet, & Inabe Shidare. All of the maples I've purchased since then were from Della Conway-J & D's Backyard Nursery. Some are in the ground & some are still in containers,-trust me, if you get some JMs, you will grow to love all of them, & check on their progress, & think about what to plant around them to enhance their beauty...

Ok. Thanks so much everybody. I'm so glad I asked you guys. Somehow I knew I might be getting a little too exotic for starting out.

So, now I'm thinking to get a Bloodgood locally - that's the only one I can get locally for a reasonable price - and maybe 2 or 3 more from an online nursery.

I just have a few more questions. How is Utsu Semi for a beginner? Is Garnet as good a choice as Red Dragon? I read that Garnet is vigorous, fast-growing, and that Red Dragon is slow-growing? Which is best for a beginner? Which am I less likely to kill?

My conditions here really are more 6b, sometimes 7a in recent years (except for this year's disastrous ice storm). Our winters are rarely anything near severe, and I can usually zone-bust with a minimum of forethought (siting, protection) on plants I know fairly well. Late freezes, here, are rarely a problem - tend to be light, not killing - I don't know how much JM's can take. That said, who's to say last winter's harshness might not be a harbinger of things to come, and I don't want to take chances with relatively expensive and unfamiliar plants - esp. in containers, because they take quite a bit more babysitting in my experience.

Our heat here is pretty severe, with pretty much no exceptions. Just about all "full sun" plants (like tomatoes, roses, etc.) benefit from a little shade. Only your truly indestructible sun-lovers like cucurbits, lilies, daisies, stone fruits, etc. can all day sun well. Drought is a big problem as well, and pots must be watered every morning religiously. I am a little concerned about this aspect. My site is what I'd call a bright, high full shade, if that makes any sense. There is light, but only a very small area with direct sun. I figure with containers I can adjust some. I don't know how humidity plays into all this, but we have early summer high humidity with searing temps, and later dry heat for the majority of the summer.

Thank you all for your patience. I'm really benefiting from your experience.

I have no personal experience with 'utsu semi', but by the looks of I'd say it should be fine. It isn't variegated and doesn't seem particular tender based on similar cultivars. So I think you could give a try, and you can keep a closer eye on it to make sure.

I have also read that 'red dragon' is slow in one source, but I think most people will agree that it is actually quite vigorous. 'Garnet' may be one of the fastest growing dissectums, but I don't think 'red dragon' would be much slower. I am pretty sure 'red dragon' will hold its color much better than 'garnet'. 'Garnet' tends to green up quite a bit during late summer, but the fall color is very nice and bright (almost orange red on mine). IMO 'red dragon' is a better cultivar, maybe the best red weeping dissectum. However, I'd say 'Garnet' is a good common variety slightly behind 'crimson queen', 'tamukeyama', 'inaba shidare', and maybe 'beni kumo no su'. So if you can find a 'garnet' for a good price, I wouldn't hesitate as a 'red dragon' may be hard to find and much more expensive.

As far as the heat goes, all of the cultivars I've listed tolerate South Carolina heat and humidity (90 to 95 F and 80 to 90% humidity is probably the average during july and early august). They do get some leaf burn in that heat and full sun, but they seem to do fine. Some part shade (like filtered underneath large oaks or something) would be ideal for these reds (they usually get burnt a bit more I think).

David I'm suprised you can't grow 'katsura' up there to be honest. Mine grows like a weed here, and late frosts haven't hurt it at all. We got a bad cold snap a couple of weeks ago and the 'katsura' was the only tree of mine that had leafed out (and it was only partially with only the first pair of leaves out in most places). It showed no damage whatsoever, and it is glowing spectacularly right now in morning sun until about 2 pm followed by filtered shade. That cold snap was down into about 28 F or so, and with about 30 mph winds. Perhaps this is common up in your neck of the woods (I've never been above Tennessee so IDK lol).