Image - Wikimedia / Stan Shebs
There are many types of maples: the vast majority are trees, but there are others that grow as shrubs or low trees. If I had to say something that would define them all, it would undoubtedly be the beautiful color that their leaves acquire at some point of the year, autumn being the season in which most of them put on their luxury suits before the arrival of winter.
But Which are the ones that are planted the most in gardens and/or grown in pots? Well, if you are curious, now I am going to tell you their names and their main characteristics.
Acer buergerianum
Image - Wikimedia / Krzysztof Golik
El Acer buergerianum It is what is known as trident maple. It is a tree native to East Asia that loses its leaves in autumn-winter. It reaches a minimum of 5 meters and a maximum of 10 meters, depending on the conditions in the area where it has been planted. When temperatures begin to drop, its foliage turns orange to reddish.
country maple
Image - Wikimedia / David Perez
El country maple It is a tree known as country maple or minor maple. It is a species native to Eurasia and is also found in North Africa. Reaches an approximate height of 10 meters and over time it develops a wide crown of about five meters. During the fall its leaves turn from green to yellow.
Acer japonicum
Image - Wikimedia / Jean-Pol GRANDMONT
El Acer japonicum It is a type of deciduous maple popularly known by the name "full moon" maple because of the rounded shape of its leaves. It is native to Japan, as its name suggests, but we can also find it in South Korea. It can be confused with the Acer palmatum which we will see later, but if there is something that differentiates them well, it is the touch of their leaves: in A. japonicum, this is very soft; not so in A. palmatum. In fact, another name for it is Japanese plush maple. Also, It usually measures between 2 and 10 meters in height.. In autumn it turns a deep red color.
Acer monspessulanum
Image - Flickr / S. Rae
El Acer monspessulanum It is a deciduous tree that grows in the Mediterranean region. It reaches an approximate height of between 10 and 20 meters, so it is one of the largest maples. During the autumn its leaves can turn yellow or red, depending on the characteristics of the soil in which it is growing.
acer negundo
Image - Wikimedia / Radio Tonreg
The black maple is a fast-growing deciduous maple native to North America. The maximum height it can reach is 25 meters, with a trunk up to a meter in diameter. The leaves are pinnate, something that is striking since in most maples they are palmate. As summer ends, they turn yellow or reddish.
Acer palmatum
El Acer palmatum it is the real japanese maple. It is deciduous, and native to Japan and South Korea. Depending on the subspecies and cultivar, It can reach a height of approximately 1 meter (as is the case of the cultivar »Little Princess»), or exceed 10 meters in height (like the also cultivar »Beni Maiko»). Its growth rate also varies greatly, but it is generally a fast growing plant. And if we talk about autumn colors, they vary a lot: red, yellow, orange, and/or purple.
Acer platanoides
Image – Wikimedia/Nickolas Titkov
El Acer platanoides It is a deciduous tree native to Europe (in Spain we will find it in the Pyrenees). It is known as royal maple, Norway maple, or Norway maple, as well as platanoid maple. It is probably the tallest species of maple, or one of the tallest, as it it can reach 30 meters in height (although the most common is that it does not exceed 20 meters). When autumn arrives, its leaves begin to turn yellow and/or reddish.
Acer pseudoplatanus
Image – Wikimedia/Lidine Mia
El Acer pseudoplatanus it is a deciduous tree known as false banana. It is native to Europe, and It can reach a height of approximately 30 meters. In popular language it is known by the name of false banana or sycamore maple. It is a plant that grows very large over time, and whose leaves turn yellow or orange during the fall.
Acer
Image – Wikimedia/Bmerva
El Acer It is a type of deciduous maple known as red maple or Canada maple, although it is actually found in much of the eastern half of North America, from Mexico to Ontario (Canada). It can reach 30 meters in height, rarely 40 meters, and its leaves, as you can imagine, turn red during the autumn.
Acer sempervirens
Image - Wikimedia / Krzystzof Ziarnek, Kenraiz
El Acer sempervirens It is a type of maple that grows in southwestern Europe and Asia. It can be evergreen or semi-evergreen. It can reach a height of 10 meters, but we also find it as a shrub of a few meters. Before winter comes, its leaves turn red, and soon after they fall off.
Do you know these types of maples?