Hi there, I'm moving to Melbourne in a year and I might, on one fine day, grow a maple tree. Sadly, that region is only up to zone 10, and most maples I know of are capable of zone 9 and below. Are there any species that are natively capable for zone 10?
Acer rubrum will grow in Zone 10. I'm in 9b and it's ubiquitous. It grows in the swampy Everglades and in dry sand of South Florida which goes down to Zone 10b. I don't think it grows in the Florida Keys, some of which is Zone 11, but the geology there is not conducive to a lot of plants. I'd look at cultivars of Acer rubrum to start off with. Also suggest you look at plant lists from botanic gardens in that Zone or close to it. Miami is definitely 10, San Diego might be 10 or 11, Houston is maybe 9. New Orleans maybe 8-9. Los Angeles is probably 10. Just a caveat: if you search for Melbourne and maples, be aware that the minor city of Melbourne Florida is one that might come up.
The tropical southeast Asian maples will be OK given enough humidity, such as Acer calcaratum, A. chapaense, A. oblongum, A. laurinum, A. pinnatinervium, A. tonkinense; also A. sempervirens from the eastern Mediterranean, which is very drought tolerant.
Thanks for the suggestions, but the last one, a. duplicatoserratum, is going to be hard to find. Are there any known resources for that kind?
Yes, meant to mention it is likely to be hard (if not impossible) to find. Maybe a species for the future for warm climate areas. Assuming you mean Melbourne, Australia, Acer palmatum itself (all kinds of cultivars) are commonly grown there. Yamina Rare Plants is situated just outside Melbourne and they have introduced at least two new cultivars of Acer palmatum, as well as stocking a good range of them. Yamina Rare Plants maple list
You might want to check with a local nursery when you are down there. They will be able give a recommendation to what to plant and most likely try to sell you something...
For some reason, warm-climate east Asian maples don't seem to have come into cultivation in Florida. The Morikami Museum and Gardens and the Mount Botanical Garden, both in Palm Beach County, Florida, would be places to ask about maples. Also Leu Gardens in Orlando, in a distinctly zone 9 climate. Los Angeles and San Diego are (depending on exact location) zone 10, but both have more persistent winter cold than southern Florida. So southern Florida and southern California have quite different lists of suitable plants. The San Diego Botanic Garden (formerly Quail Garden) and San Diego Zoo would be good places to check for maples. Acer rubrum of eastern North America is native into southern mainland Florida, not the Keys, according to the Institute for Regional Conservation.
I came across a test of various A. rubrum cultivars in "the south," i.e. hot weather performance. Perhaps this will help. -E
Hi, You can grow lots of maples in Victoria ( that is the state Melbourne is the capital off) I live further north where it is much warmer and you do not get beautiful autumn colors. I still have about 200 maples in my backyard and enyoy growing them. regards Wolfgang
Since you say Japanese varieties can be grown, how about those hardier ones like A. pseudosieboldianum?
