Wow gorgeous plants Dan.

Impressive.

Thanks herman neutics, here are a few more.

A.p. 'Kamagata'

A.p. 'Beni Otake'

Acer shirasawanum 'Aureum', A.p. 'Baldsmith', A.p. 'Red Dragon'

Dan

You've got some beautiful trees. Thanks for posting.

Dan,

Beautiful trees!! I love the 'Yuri hime' too. I noticed that some of your maples are planted close together. Do you plan to move them when they eventually get to their mature sizes?
Thanks for posting these pictures.

xman

Hi xman, yep I'll have to move a few things soon. I think the little 'Baldsmith' in the bottom center will be the first thing to get moved early next Spring. Most of my stuff is planted too close for ultimate size, but I like combining color and texture and I'm tight on space, so sometimes I make my own rules. The A.s. 'Aureum' and A.p. 'Red Dragon' are staying put. I've had the 'Aureum' for about 7 years and if I'm able to raise it until maturity it'll grow up and over the 'Red Dragon'. I'm not adverse to pruning either. I think done correctly, it can improve the form of a tree while getting it to go where you want it too. The 'Red Dragon', I've been selectively pruning for about six years and it's starting to develop a beautiful winter silouette. Guess that was a long answer, the short answer is yes they're too close together : )

Thanks for the response, Dan

Too close together? Sometimes you can plan two maples close together and grow as one by pruning so one doesn't get the best of the other due to different growth rates and ultimate size. Here's an example.

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They're still young, but you get the idea.

I've got the same issues in my yard -- not enough space for all of the JMs I would like to have. I've gotten around it by planting dwarf varieties as much as possible, and growing some of the smaller varieties in containers. However, I occasionally have to move maples, and I've replaced some other shrubs/small trees in my yard to make room for more maples.

My brother lives outside of Chicago (Geneva) and I am surprised you are able to grow so many varieties on JMs where you live. He has a Crimson Queen that has survived but usually loses a few limbs in cold winters. I bought him an Acer Shirawasanum variety (Palmatifolium) a few years ago for a birthday present, but I'm not sure if it survived. It arrived in the mail while he was out of town and took a beating before it ever made it to the ground.

Hi dawgie, Glad to hear someone can empathasize with my lack of space. Yeah Zone 5 is a little tougher to grow Japanese maples in. A lot of my maples are planted too close to the house, but they're healthy and doing well. Everybody's got their own style of gardening. I guess mine is cluttered and colorful : ). Thanks for the response. Dan
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Wow, those are beautiful. I have five JMs myself and that's about all my small yard can handle, along with an 50-year-old oak, a couple of hollies and a big "flame" maple. Oh, and did I mention the 100 year old magnolia that drops leaves in the neighbor's yard year round?

I love the way you put your plants together, they look fabulous, but I'm wondering if you'll have to dig a few up as they grow?

Lainey

Dan,

The only reason I noticed the closeness was because I have a very small yard about (25 x 25 feet). I have about 35 Japanese maples all in containers, and some of them are 7 to 8 years old and getting big.
I love the way you have utilized the space in your garden, and I am going to see if I can replicate some of your plantings. The other problem I have is the TX heat, my back yard faces west and gets a lot of sun, I have 2 bradford pears trees that shade a part of the yard ( 10 x 25 feet) so all my maples are in this small area pretty much stacked next to each other. I have not planted any companion plants yet.

I love your conifer/pine? collections, what are the names of the ones in the hyperturfa containers? are they dwarf varieties?

Is that a pondless waterfall?

thanks for posting these pictures.
xman

Wow Dan!! Gorgeous stuff. I like things a little crowded and cozy. That's the way they are in nature. Plants spread out all over each other trying to find their place in the sun, so to speak. I prefer your type of planting to anything formal. This is much more appealing.

I too would appreciate descriptions of your evergreens. Perhaps a little "map" of the photos. Very lovely indeed.

Keep sharing!

DV

I have an Ok size yard but I would like to confine a group of J maples I purchased to a small area...Some of the cultivars....
Shiraz
Peaches and Cream
Butterfly
Geisha
Emperor 1
Sangu Kaku
Abigail rose
Kamagata and a 2 other white/pink varigates
Any idea how close I can plant the dwarf size 4-8 ft???

Nice to see your garden again, Dan. Well thought out, and an example for all.
Mike

Lovely, I wish JM didn't fare poorly here w/o wind protection (well some of the dissectas that I love at least get torn to shreds).