There is a Chinese proverb that says something like: An image is worth a thousand words. Well, Arnaut seem to apply this proverb literally ;o))) The maple shown in this thread was selected in the W.J Hoofman Nurseries in Holland as a sport of 'Silver Cardinal'. Initially it was identified as Acer conspicuum 'Red Flamingo' by, seemingly, analogy with its 'parent' Acer conspicuum 'Silver Cardinal'. Today Cor van Gelderen (with whom I spoke of this two weeks ago) and several other growers seem to believe that both 'Silver Cardinal' and 'Red Flamingo' are rather Acer rubescens I have both and confirm 'Red Flamingo' has brighter colors, more upright habit and more attractive bark than 'Silver Cardinal' The pictures of the leaves and bark were taken two days ago. Gomero
Hello,I've just bought one of these but know little about it.Should it be treated pretty much like a JM?..ie sheltered postion,not too much sun,similar drainage/moisture? or is it a bit tougher? Also can it be kept containerised for long? as I've seen quotes for sizes ranging from 2-10 metres..many thanks
Hi Houzi, My tree is about 3-4 m. tall. It was initially planted in dappled shade but in the second and third years, the leaves displayed very little red/pink variegation which I presumed to be due to the lack of sun. Also I did not find again those bright red stripes in the bark. So last winter I moved it to a sunnier location. Now I have seen a small improvement but not as much as I had hoped for. Hope it helps. Gomero
Oh thanks for replying...3-4m?,that's quite a size already....I guess it can't stay in a container too long then,I wasn't sure how big these get. Ah your experience does follow something I read,in that they need sun to keep variegation,seemingly opposite to JMs. It's my first snake bark so I don't know and haven't read how to keep the striped bark bright.Perhaps exposure like coral barks? As soon as I got it I removed a couple of unwanted branches and just for fun have made a few cuttings.Any idea if cuttings take easily from this plant?..cheers Gomero
I have never tried cuttings. Concerning bark colors, do not forget that, for a given location, they are different in the winter and the summer. Gomero
I've been following this thread with interest. My Red Flamingo is still in a pot, and is practically weeping in habit. I'd love to get it to be more upright. However the colors remain very strong especially in secondary growth. My records list it as sp rubesencs, which probably means Esveld changed they're labeling since Gomero got his. A beautiful, and for me much more upright rubescens cultivar is Yakushima nishiki, but it doesn't have much in the way of pink variegation and the stems are green or yellow. -E
i buy this maple 3 years ago grown in total sun because i see that, x conspicum, have a very good tollerance to hot temperature ,Red Flamingo is the best ,more than Cardinal or Phoenix .he grown in my zone 30 cm/year pics are of may 2011
Ah Alex your tree's looking good.Great to know it can take full sun,I wasn't sure.Emery,you say it will develop weeping habit.I pruned mine(also still in pot)as soon as I got it home to leave just a single stem and one side branch.I don't usually 'attack' my new plants but I wanted to start training it early and I've read it's best not to prune when dormant?I don't mind weeping as long as I can keep a central stem...we'll see. Thanks for all the info guys
Thinking of adding this one to my collection; anyone know if/where I can find it in the US? What's the typical growth rate on it? Being able to handle full sun is a great asset; does it do well in heat as well?
Mine is in dappled shade, doing well but hasn't gained much size. It is still very weepy though, I've got it going over the edge of a wall. Not gained more than a few cm in height, I was planning on staking it next year.
rubscens Red flamingo or Silver cardinal remember me typical growth of Cedrus this is mine Silver cardinal ,Red flamingo is 3 meter high but growth like S.c.
Here is my Red Flamingo relaxing in the shade of Acer saccharinum. It shows no signs of wishing to gain height, and remains very red/pink in the secondary growth, so that it lights up the corner as much as any of the flowers around it. Looking forward to when it fills up this corner completely.
This is my first posting of my Acer x conspicuum 'Red Flamingo ' I wanted to show the leaf colours now and then I will follow up throughout the year with the bark as it develops the lovey red and white stripes it is known for.
What is the difference between "conspicuum red flamingo" and "conspicuum phoenix"? they look similar to me ...
I've been meaning to reply to this thread, and ttook some pics during the year, to contribute. First, during the month of June, leaves and bark: The end of October: As chance would have it, I took a couple of picture of Acer x conspicuum 'Silver Cardinal'. So please note, these next 3 are 'Silver Cardinal' and not 'Red Flamingo': These are the two that are usually compared, not 'Phoenix', which has very pink bark and unvariegated leaves. While 'Silver Cardinal' and 'Red Flamingo' are quite similar, the latter is much more flagrantly (some say garishly) red in the new foliage, where the former has mottled pink in various shades, but is never garish. The bark also differs in that 'Silver Cardinal' has a lovely blue tint on mature bark, which we don't see on 'Red Flamingo' I believe 'Red Flamingo' should be called Acer rubescens 'Red Flamingo', it was sold to me under this etiquette, and most botanists seemed to be in agreement that this is correct. A. x conspicuum refers to a specific garden hybrid of A. davidii x A. pensylvanicum, but because it's a sharper marketing name there seems to be a tendency for nurserypeople to name any rubescens- or variegated - seedling from Section Macrantha this way, which I find unfortunate. An anecdote told to me by de Jong: Oterdoom and van Gelderen wanted to group these garden hybrids 'Silver Cardinal', 'Elephant's Ear', 'Silver Vein' and Phoenix' under Acer x conspicuum. De Jong objected, and wouldn't budge until a night of hard drinking and singing in a favorite bar convinced him. And so Acer x consipicuum was born, to everyone's lasting confusion. I can't find a shot of 'Phoenix' quickly, but there are many around. It has very large, broad green leaves, a little crinkled, and lovely pink bark. It looks nothing like the other Acer x conspicuum. However, like the others, it is very prone to pseudomonas, and the often disfigure the lovely pink striped bark.
I was walking by the tree, so I snapped a couple of pics of the bark of A. x conspicuum 'Phoenix'. Easier than finding pictures, sadly! At twilight but you can still see the pink bark quite clearly. Again, this is 'Phoenix' not 'Red Flamingo'.
thank you Emery for all this information! my nurseryman can have me "red flamingo" "phoenix" and "elephant ear" which one do you recommend?
The only reason to get 'Elephant's Ear' is for the rarity, if you're a collector. It needs practically perfect conditions to show well consistently. and even its selectioner isn't particularly fond of it. The leaves are big sometimes -- but big for a snakebark maple, not big for other plants, nor as big as some other maples -- and are often chlorotic. The bark doesn't last as well as the other varieties, becoming a bit rough so that the striping is difficult to see. So you might want to rule this one out. For the other two, their very different. 'Phoenix' is nore difficult to grow, and also more upright. It drops leaf very early in the fall, compared to 'Red Flamingo' which is late. 'Phoenix' is quite drought intolerant. And you don't want to see what it does if you let it get stressed. I guess the main question is: summer variegated interest, or winter stem interest? Those are the main uses of these two.
11th May 2022 and the leaves are fully open and showing why this maple is so interesting. The colours are really wonderful.
14th June 2022 and into Summer now, but the colours are still vibrant including the new branches and petioles.
