Acer palmatum 'Mure hibari'

Plant Description: Matsumurae Group, Green

An upright deciduous tree with dainty, small green leaves with seven deeply-divided narrow lobes. Fall color is yellow to orange to red. Prefers sun/partial shade in well-drained soil. 8' tall x 4' wide in 10 years. Hardy to -20 degrees. USDA zone 5.

According to Vertrees/Gregory:

"The medium-sized leaves of this old Japanese cultivar are deeply divided into seven narrow, elongate-lanceolate lobes that taper to long, slender pointed tips. These lobes separate almost to the leaf base and radiate sharply outward. The edges of each lobe are slightly curved up or trough-shaped and prominently toothed. The short leaf stalks are reddish. The basic leaf color is light green. Margins of new leaves are tinted with a bright brick red. In the fall, yellow to crimson blends appear.

This medium-strong grower forms an upright plant up to 5m (16 ft) tall. It is quite vigorous and hardy. One Japanese writer described the leaf shape as "like a crystal of snow" and unique. 'Mure hibari' is indeed a beautiful cultivar but is little-known. The name means "flock of skylarks."

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Is anyone else growing this cultivar? I just ordered one, and was surprised to find it didn't have a photo thread here. Will add photos once it arrives, but here is the Esveld link to photos:

http://www.esveld.nl/htmldia/a/acpmhb.php

 

I'm curious how your Mure Hibari is coming along. I bought one that had been container grown for 10 years at a plant sale last fall. It's spring color is fantastic and I'm really taken by it. Thinking of trying to find another and planting in the ground. The container plant is very, very short - wondering how large yours is getting and if you have any photos. Thanks!

 

Hi there!

It has a great spring color. I had mine potted for a couple of seasons, then planted it in the yard last spring. It made it through my 5b winter, which was a risk, but then again we had a mild winter this year. Its hardiness in zone 5b is still unproven for me.

Mine is about 4-5 feet tall at the moment. No photos of the whole tree, but I have a few of the leaves and branches I think. I think the spring color was my favorite...that bright yellow with hints of orange was a stand-out in the yard. Red fall color is a bit boring (I prefer oranges), but as a mature tree I'm sure it would be stunning. The movement of the leaves in the wind is really very pretty.

 

Hi @maplesmagpie, what a beautifully delicate branching tree. Love the size and colouring of the leaves. A new one on me in England. 'Lovely photos' btw.

 

Thanks for the reply! Your tree looks very much like mine though I think yours seems a bit more upright, as the usual description of Mure Hibari would suggest. I wonder how mine would fare in the ground after all these years in a pot. I've finally resized some photos of mine from this spring, as the website rejected my earlier ones as too big. I agree about the movement of the wind through the tree. It is aptly named as "Flock of Skylarks". I also added a photo of the bark color on mine, which I found really captivating. It is almost more of a yellow than a green sometimes and just adds to the overall effect of this tree. It's a real stunner. I'm enjoying watching the lower leaves slowly change to more of a green. I bought it last autumn, so I haven't seen the summer color yet, but am looking forward to it. Seems like it will have an almost fernlike feel in green. Here are pics of mine. Thanks for further confirming I do indeed have Mure Hibari.

 

Lovely photos. And yes-- I would post more photos, too, but the size limit makes it quite annoying! I have to go into my photo editing software and shrink everything, which is so time consuming.

If you like the coloration of this one, you may also like the Exbury form of Chitose yama. It's a green cultivar in the summer, but in the spring it leafs out with a very unique yellow-orange color.

 

Don't the Japanese just name their maples beautifully. 'Flock of Skylarks', Just wonderful !!!!!

 

Sorry for the late reply here, but interesting that you mention Chitose Yama: an unknown cultivar to me but now looking at some photos online, the spring color reminds me of my Osakazuki Akame. Of course, trying to figure out if I had a real Osakazuki was what led me to these forums in the first place. Ha! I am pretty certain I have a more "modern" version of Osakazuki Akame now.

And @Acerholic - yes, the names are wonderful. I have to say that the name was one of the factors in my opting to purchase it. I had never heard of it but it was so lovely and then I looked up the cultivar and read the name translation. Totally fell for the poetry of it. You can really see it too in the way the leaves look and move together.

 

Very small still, but here's mine:

 

A small flock of skylarks, but so very pretty Xi.

 

9th April 2022 and this one really said good morning to me today. So cheerful !!

 

Fully awake now and enjoying the filtered shade it's getting:

 

Wow, a month or perhaps two weeks ahead of mine Xi. Looking very pretty.

 

12th May 2022 and my Mure hibari is looking very happy this morning.

 

Does anyone have any summer pictures of this one? I see Stephen Roff has it on his eBay shop...

 

4th June 2022, hope this helps Chris @Cattwooduk.Taken moments ago.

 

Yes, thanks Derek!
Lovely shades, I'll add it to the list!

 

Lol....

 

Oh @Cattwooduk , you're going down the Stephen Roff slippery slope I see (I know how that feels!) In the name of further enabling, here's mine from this morning - also a Stephen Roff purchase. Mine doesn't have as much red redging as @Acerholic 's, but it's still a pretty little thing:

 

Think we have given Chris enough to wet his appetite Xi. Isn't this just a lovely delicate cultivar!!?

 

Haha, let's hope so! It really is: those feathered edges and the bright colours are just wonderful aren't they?

 

They really are.

 

Yes it's a beauty for sure!
It's on the potential list for now - I've got a feeling I may have something very similar already in amongst all my own seedlings I've grown. I'm away this weekend but once I'm home I'll check through them all.

Is it as delicate as it looks when it comes to sun tolerance?

 

Mine gets a lot of sun and does fine. IMO this cultivar is going to do very well and not fry during the Summer months.

 

This is the one I've grown from seed which is quite similar but not as finely cut or as feathery. Looking forward to seeing it grow.