Acer palmatum 'Hana matoi'

Charlie - a really gorgeous maple for a beautiful yard. Thanks for sharing. Sam

 

Sam

Thanks, I was very happy to receive this tree as a gift. I was told it is one of the bigger Hana Matoi to be out in the general population. I have it planted in full sun which was questioned but so far it has been doing good. I have to say it is fun landscaping with the selection of trees i get my hands on. ,

 

What a beautiful specimen and garden! Is this the summer colour for this plant? I saw a specimen about the same size as this in a polyhouse earlier this spring. It has a strong mix of pink, cream and green leaves. I am just wondering the colouring variation is due to level of sun exposure or seasonal.

 

Since this is my only hana matoi and I have had it only in fully sun, I can not say what the coloring would be if in shade. I know that on my Toyama nishiki I get a much different variation of color on the trees in partical sade as compared to the ones in full sun. I would say with the Hana matoi, it probaly is best in a partical shade location to get the most color out of it. For me, I am always moving trees around so for now it is in the sun, next year maybe it goes to shade.

 

Hope you can keep us posted on the mid-summer and fall colours for this beautiful maple. I am hoping to get one next spring.

 

I moved my Hana Matoi some weeks back into full shade, as the full sun was beginning to damage the leaves. Now the coloration is a very dark green base with the same pink highlights. I regret the move a bit, because the dark green overpowers the pink, and viewed from a distance, it appears mostly dark green. But I don't want to shock it now and put it back into the sun with summer right around the corner. Maybe next season I'll move it into a semi-sunny spot and see how it does.

 

While I've only had Hana Matoi in my garden a couple years, I anxiously await the variegation to appear each spring and already know some years are better than others. Still, I do like the variegated dissectums and wish there were more.

 

Here are some pictures of some small grafts of 'Hana Matoi'. I love this plant. I have heard some people say that sometimes it reverts to green with variegation. Is this the "certain cultural aspects" that Yano speaks of? I thought this was just a sun/shade issue. Any ideas? Has anyone had a green variegated 'Hana Matoi' turn red again?

Tim

 

This is one of my new favorite maples. The pink color is strong and it is also a vigorous grower. Must be staked to get height. I can hardly wait until I have a 4' Hana matoi. Sam

 

here are some photos of my Hana Matoi, it is sitting in full sun. It still has some pink variegation on the lower hidden leaves. The top part has red leaves. So Far I do not see any burnt leaves on the tree. There is very little sign of green color.

 

I fully agree with Mapledia when she says that the variegation is different each year, even with the plant in the same spot. Mine has a lot of reddish pink this year with, amazingly, no dieback at all. The plant is in a pot with morning sun only.

Gomero

 

Here is my Hana matoi in september, it has been in full sun (PNW full sun). I have not had any leaf burn.

 

It is just opening up, the color is looking great

 

I have my likes and dislikes and Hana matoi is one of my "likes". Its color does stand out in a crowd.

 

Just got my 3yr Hana matoi yesterday and I'm already in love with it! Some of the leaves are a little wilty from shipping, but I'm not terribly concerned. Overall shape of the tree is nice, and I know I'll be on the edge of my seat come spring waiting for it to leaf out. :)

Any quirks or idiosyncracies I should be aware of for this cultivar?

 

I keep mine in well-drained soil with bright filtered light, and they have been doing very well. My plants seem quite robust, haven't experienced any significant die-back, and I'm quite happy with them overall. I do find that the amount of variegation and color saturation changes from year to year, but usually these changes have been rather subtle.
Best of luck with your new growie.

 

MaplesandPaws

Nice looking Hana matoi, but it needs staking. This is a heavy weeper and will lay on the ground without a stake. The higher it grows the more stately it becomes. Lots of lateral branching hanging down with beautiful color.

 

OK, so I just purchased a new Hana matoi and picked it up locally yesterday. It is in a 12" square box (inside dimensions). The plant is 32" high at its highest point. Do I need to try to "straighten" the top where it is already starting to weep to get it higher before it starts to weep, or do I just let it grow out at this point? Won't it continue to get taller on its own at this point? About how fast will it grow once it gets established (6" per year, more or less)?
Also, will it stay more green with less light? I was going to put it in a spot where it really only gets about 1 to 2 hours of direct sun from about 10 AM until noon, then heavy shade (from the house) after that. Will that work?

 

Hi Jerry,

From the photo the Hana matoi seems to be leaning. Staking will straighten out the trunk as well as give you the opportunity to tie a leader to increase height. Some weeping maples send out new shoots that go up rather than down. I haven't seen this on my Hana matoi, which is why I suggest staking for height and beauty. This practice will create new levels of branching to enhance the beauty of the maple.

As to the amount of sunlight - I can't really offer an opinion on how it will grow with that little sunlight. I think you will get some pink color, just not sure how much.

Lovely maple. Maple_Lady

 

The tree is not causing as much excitement as i thought it would be for its beautiful colors. i guess the growth habit is the hang up for people.

 

I don't know. I think part of the problem is that it takes a couple of years for an Acer palmatum to show its true 'colors' in the landscape in which you place it. As such, mine, that I got this spring, is not nearly as colorful as when I saw it in the nursery from which I saw it last year. But, that may be a case of the environment as much as anything else; as I still have it in the box that I purchased it, and it has been a very hot spring. Then again the weather and placement within it plays such an important part that I don't know what to expect from one year to the next with any of my Acer palmatum's!
I'm convinced that this is a really special clone of Acer palmatum, and it just takes time to appreciate the true value of this plant. Then again, I'm still a "newbie" to this site and growing them (but not all plants). In fact, one of the things that is difficult to me is the precarious position that Acer palmatum occupies. By that, I meant that it seems that their color and attributes seems to be defined so delicately within the environment that they occupy that from year to year the variation seems unpredictable. I don't know of another genus of plants for which this is true. Perhaps that is part of the excitement that they enjoy?!

 

In my case I bought several Hana matoi this last year and only a few of them found a home. Lots of people looked at them but just could not find a place for them. Then again weepers are tend to stick around

 

I bought a gardening magazine in March, and there was a "promotional offer", so I ordered one.

When I received it at the end of April, I first regretted my order: the tree looked in poor condition, and there was this stuff on the soil which is generally the sign of too much water in it. So I removed the weed, and put the tree in a bigger pot without touching the roots. There was no sign of these white secondary roots that can be seen when the tree is healthy. I filled in the rest of the pot with a mix of pozzolane and pumice to allow more oxygen and a better draining.

A month later, it looks much better. I didn't take photos in-between, but the colours were particularly stunning, from dark red to a luminous light pink. I hope this one will survive... ^^

 

Having run a tree and shrub division at a local retail nursery for nearly 10 years, I can agree with you that people look at weeping Acer palmetum's, but don't buy too many of them. I think one of the issues with weeping trees is that they tend to be a focal point in a landscape, and it is difficult to work more than one weeping tree into a given area, unless that area is large. Too much for the eye to skip to from one point to the other. The fact that Hana matoi has variegated foliage increases its presence in the landscape even further. In addition, I've had quite a number of prospective buyers back away from variegated plants because they think they will be more difficult to grow. And, in some cases some people felt there was something "wrong" with the plant since it wasn't all green! Another issue with weeping trees is the breadth they attain in the landscape at a low level. My mature Acer palmatum Crimson Queen is now more than 10' across and is only 4' tall (the top portion died more than 15 years ago, so it has gotten broad, but not tall). That's quite a hunk of real estate if you have a small lot to work with. In the case of Hana matoi, I don't have enough experience to know whether it will require protective siting to be able to grow well in our midwest environment. I have lots of shade, so worries of burning go out the window. It is more an issue of enough bright light to bring out the colors.
Nevertheless, my own Hana matoi is now turning the beautiful multi-colors that caused me to buy it when I saw it for the first time. I'll easily find a place for this plant in my own garden, but I have more than 2 acres to work with and have numerous "rooms" to work with. Hana matoi is truly a beautiful soft-looking tree with a lot of character. A WINNER in my book!

AlainK: your repotted tree is looking MUCH better. Nice job!

 

Since the tree I purchased last year ended up kicking the bucket this spring (combination of horrendous summer heat + mild winter + getting super-saturated by a 5 day stretch of rain + pseudomonas/fungus), I purchased a new one from Sam at Eastfork. She estimates it to be at least 6 years old and, best of all, it's got a LOW graft! The tree is a solid 3ft tall in the pot, and while not very wide yet, is decently filled out and will keep getting better.

I know this tends to be a strong weeper, so I will keep it staked until I feel it's tall enough, but in general, how wide can this cultivar get? I think I know where I want it - a nice focal point in our courtyard by the front door - but I want to make sure I don't have it too close to the porch or the sidewalk.

I know sun intensity varies dramatically depending on where you are, and I have read from Charlie's posts that he has his Hana in full sun and it's doing well. However, full sun in the PNW is very, very different from full sun during high summer here in Kansas. Typically, it is recommended to have maples in morning sun with afternoon shade. However, the courtyard faces WNW, and so it will have shade in morning until about 1pm, somewhat indirect becoming slightly more direct (but never straight overhead) sun until about 5pm, the bright shade until sundown around 8:30pm. I plan to keep it in the pot for a while in this position to see if it's a good spot, but do you think it may be too much sun? Feedback from personal experience would be greatly appreciated!