Acer palmatum 'Garnet'

Common name: Japanese Maple 'Garnet'

Description: Acer palmatum 'Garnet' is one of the most widely loved and enduringly popular of all Japanese Maples, a dissectum cultivar of exceptional and long-established garden merit that has earned its place as a cornerstone of the British ornamental garden for its outstanding combination of finely cut foliage, rich and persistent colour, and gracefully weeping habit of great elegance and refinement. The deeply and intricately dissected, lace-like leaves are a rich, glowing garnet-red to deep ruby-crimson when they emerge in spring, and — unlike many red-leaved Japanese Maples that fade to a less distinguished bronze-green as the season progresses — 'Garnet' retains its deep, jewel-like reddish-purple colouring with commendable persistence through the summer months, maintaining its contribution to the planting scheme long after the initial spring flush has subsided. The foliage is carried on a naturally mounding, broadly spreading framework of gracefully cascading branches that builds over the years into a wide, dome-shaped specimen of considerable beauty and sculptural presence, the arching, layered branch structure providing a quiet but genuine architectural quality that is as valuable in winter, when the intricate tracery of the bare stems can be fully appreciated, as in the growing season. In autumn, 'Garnet' delivers its final and perhaps most spectacular seasonal performance as the foliage ignites in brilliant shades of scarlet, crimson, and fiery orange-red before leaf fall, ensuring this outstanding small tree contributes beauty and drama at every stage of the growing year. The slow, patient growth and ultimately modest proportions of 'Garnet' make it an outstanding choice for smaller gardens, prominent border positions, Japanese-inspired and contemporary garden schemes, and container cultivation in a generous pot of ericaceous compost, where it will develop over many years into a specimen of real distinction and considerable collector's value.

Other benefits: one of the most reliable and persistent red-leaved dissectum Japanese Maples, retaining colour well through summer; spectacular fiery autumn colour; graceful weeping mounding habit of outstanding sculptural quality; attractive winter branch structure; slow-growing and suitable for smaller gardens and containers; long-lived and increasingly valuable as a mature specimen

Wildlife attraction: aphids and their predators including ladybirds and lacewings; occasional visiting bees

Height & spread (approx.) at 10 years: 1.5m x 2m

Position: partial shade preferred; morning sun with afternoon shade is ideal, particularly in hotter, drier summers; shelter from cold, drying winds and late spring frosts which can scorch the delicate emerging foliage is essential; avoid hot, dry, exposed positions

Soil pH: performs best in neutral to slightly acid soils; pH 5.5–6.5; prefers fertile, humus-rich, moisture-retentive but well-drained soil; avoid thin, dry, chalky, or very alkaline conditions; benefits from the incorporation of ericaceous compost at planting

Moisture: regular and consistent watering required, particularly when grown in containers and during dry spells; prefers consistently moist but well-drained, humus-rich soil; do not allow to dry out, particularly during the first few years after planting and during prolonged summer drought

Winter hardiness: hardy to approximately -15°C; young emerging foliage in spring is susceptible to damage from late frosts and cold, drying winds; a sheltered position is strongly recommended