As someone who has killed every Japanese maple she has tried except for one, a green-leafed variety, I don't have a suggestion for you, but I would like to find out, too! (I even tried growing a smaller cultivar in a pot so I didn't have to deal with the soil here; it died, too.)

Most of the conditions we have here in the Westminster/Arvada area will have a negative impact on Japanese maples, but I have seen them thriving in some yards, including a neighbor's yard right down the street from me, so I am not sure what I am doing wrong, lol. As far as cold hardiness is concerned, the majority of them are rated to Zone 5, though some are Zone 6 and above; here is a link with hardiness of various cultivars listed: Japanese Maple Cold Hardiness Zone Chart.

Japanese maples like highly-acidic, well-draining soils, not the alkaline, clay soil we have here in the Denver Metro area. You can amend the planting area soil, of course, but very carefully - so often we end up with a nice basin of rich, loose soil siting in a bowl of clay, the dreaded bathtub effect, where the clay soil surrounding the nicely amended area keeps the water from draining properly from around your new tree, and the roots will seldom venture out into the native soil, so you have root bound your tree in addition to trying to drown it.

Needless to say, they are not xeric, will need a consistent amount of water to keep the soil moist but not soggy. Dealing with the "feast or famine" type of rainfall we have here, combined with the clay soil which goes from cracked adobe to a gluey morass and back again in just a few days, is difficult for them. Obviously, some heavy mulching is a must. They need a protected area because they cannot deal with the drying winter winds we have here, also need to be in a partial sun/filtered shade area, especially when considering our intense Colorado sunlight. (It always amazes me that places like Paulino Gardens put their stock of Japanese maples outside in full sunlight, no shade cloth at all; I imagine people that buy them think they must like full sun, but the leaves will burn up in full sun....)

Despite my apparent inability to grow them, I really like Japanese maples, and plan to try a red-leafed cultivar again. I hope some folks with success stories will chime in to tell us what cultivars, planting site/soil amendments worked for them.

Holly

You could always just grow cannabis for the same effect, this is Colorado after all lol. And a marijuana plant has better odds of survival than a JM haha.

In any case, I don't want to dissuade you, but several people have mentioned that they want one and I always talk them out of it unless they are in for a serious challenge with VERY slim chances of success. The things are absurdly expensive, too.

Thanks, Holly. There are two houses in my neighborhood that have them. They are both sitting in nearly the same spot in their North-facing front yards very close to the house presumably protected from a lot of wind.

I look forward to hearing more as well.

I agree with what Zach says, but still lust after these darn trees!

lol - I like his suggestion of trying cannabis as a substitute for lace-leafed Japanese maple cultivars, but thus far they haven't developed a pot plant with red coloring so it won't have quite the same effect....and, of course, unlike the real thing, no winter interest at all since you would harvest in the fall. :-D

A northern or eastern exposure would work best for Japanese maples. If I try one again - I imagine I am stubborn enough to do so despite the likelihood of failure - I will plant it in my shade garden on the northern side of my house. I have an area set up that is quite sheltered from the wind, has latticework set up as a "ceiling" for the area to make sure the garden gets filtered sunlight. It is where I have bamboo and ferns growing, along with the only Japanese Maple that has survived for about 5-6 years now. Survived, but not necessarily thrived....still, I am hopeful!

Good luck, popmama. It is unfortunate to fall in love with a plant that really isn't suitable for our area, but it seems to be part of gardening life, at least for me! It is also unfortunate that local nurseries - not talking about the big box stores, we all know their plant selection has little to do with what is suitable for the "locals" to grow - also cater to "ignorance" and offer plants that really shouldn't be grown here. You would think they would know better - or at least include some warnings and disclaimers at their display to let folks know the plant will be a struggle!

Holly

I have also killed several bloodgoods. I thought if I stayed away from the laced- leaf types and tried the thicker leaf type it'd help stand up to the wind. I think the issue at my place is cold hardiness. There just really isn't a "protected" spot for them at my house.

Having said that, on a tree tour in Fort Collins last weekend I saw several, both Bloodgood and laced leafed types doing beautifully. I think wind protection and partial shade are key.

I bought a korean/japanese maple hybrid at Paulino's last year, will link the info below. Arctic Jade is rated to zone 4, but site preferences seem to be the same as Japanese maple, partial shade and wind protection. The leader looks to have died over the winter, but the rest of the tree looks good this spring.

Arctic Jade

Iseli has three hybrids in the series, Arctic Jade, Avalanche and North Wind. Avalanche looks like the best fit, color wise, for you.

Barb

Thank you treebarb. I was hoping you would contribute. I'll check out those suggestions.