Here is another picture of the tree with the different color branch.

There are hundreds of Japanese maple cultivars. But I would not buy this one anyway, it is in poor condition - if it were a car it would be called a "beater".

bboy, thanks for the information.

I'm new to maple tree. Can you tell me why this is considered a poor condition? Is it because of the branch?

I'm curious. What do you look for when buying a maple tree that is considered good condition.

thanks in advance,

There is a lot of dieback on the branches, it looks like there may be a split at the graft union, it may very well be quite rootbound and it has not been tended to properly. This plant has been hanging around like this for sometime - as bboy says, not a prime specimen at all.

You want to see a young tree in the prime of health: leafing out well with well-formed, unblemished leaves, good branching structure, no dieback or stem discoloration and a sound graft union. And a good healthy root system - harder to judge when in a container but small ones can be easily slipped from the pot for inspection.

thanks gardengal48.