I first saw this rare and beautiful tree in June 2006 at Glendoick garden near Perth in Scotland. The unusual pale flaking bark and large upright flower spikes made it stand out as something very special. There was no name tag on it, but I did manage to pin it down to a form of A. caudatum. Mrs Heather Shearer has kindly revisited and taken these photos for me, which I thought Maple enthusiasts would like to share. The tree now has a tag :- Acer caudatum Georgei.
Re: Acer caudatum Georgei Apparently considered a synonym of A. caudatum in Flora of China. http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=200012946 However, specimen shown has bark like ones cultivated as A. caudatum ssp. ukurunduense (A. ukurunduense). Flora of China appears not to account for this name. The Van Gelderens, Maples for Gardens include China in its natural range.
Re: Acer caudatum Georgei Thank you Ron for your link. I tried to research this tree in 2006 and then decided it was probably A. caudatum ukurunduense, but having now seen young trees it doesn't look quite the same.This one has exceedingly long petioles and the shape of the leaves look different.It is the only mature specimen of any A. caudatum that I have seen. The tree is in the gardens of the Cox family. Three generations of keen plant hunters and nurserymen(specialising in Rhododendrons) Euan, Peter and Kenneth.As the tree had a label I thought it prudent to use that name.
Re: Acer caudatum Georgei Yes, I know about Glendoick and the Cox family. In fact, I have at least two of their books. The placing of var. georgei under the typical species may have occurred since the identification of the tree there. The Van Gelderens say only that the species occurs as ssp. caudatum and ssp. ukurunduense. Possibly var. georgei and the other synonyms listed on the Flora of China page were relegated to synonymy some time ago, but still after the Cox tree was named. Or the change in status of var. georgei was not widely known and accepted at that time. Maybe some day another author will even determine the two ssp. blend together (are linked by intermediates) and say the splitting into two subspecies should be discontinued as well.
Re: Acer caudatum Georgei Thank you Luddite and Mrs Shearer for the lovely pictures. I agree this is ssp ukurunduense. There is often a fair amount of polymorphism that makes identification difficult. The bark on this one is quite unusual, much more papery than is usual for the species. Thanks again, the branching structure is particularly striking. -E
