I found these great pdfs on Don Schmid nursery. They have great information on each variety with several photos. The full book (389 pages) has everything or you can check out trees by categories like upright, dwarf, variegated...ect Many show examples of mature trees. Definitely worth checking out! This is Don's life work, I presume because it would take a lifetime to collect all these great photos and detailed information comprised from his experience growing the varieties (and not the typical recycled descriptions) Don Schmidt Nursery | Maple Books Maple Books Check out our full Maple Book: Full Book (33MB) or download a single variety: Dwarf (8MB) | Lace Leaf (4MB) | Trial (7MB) |Upright (12MB) | Variegated (3MB) You can also view our Online Plant List to see our selection.
I'm bumping this to the top again, because I think it's such a worthwhile reference. Many people might not have had a chance to see it and bookmark it. ...plus the weather is getting colder now, and this book makes for great window shopping.
Dip in randomly; from p.183: Sorry, but someone who (a) miscapitalises species names, and (b) gets spelling so badly wrong (should be crataegifolium and veitchii respectively, of course) just doesn't win any respect from me. Getting such things right is a fundamental basic bottom line for anyone writing about plants. One has to wonder how many of the cultivar names are correct, or not . . .
I guess I'm at the point in my life that I could care less who respects who, I have found more important things in life to care about. But I do tend to speak out for those who no longer have a voice. I can find thanks and admiration when someone has devoted a lifes work to growing since 1939 and chooses to share their knowledge and photos with us. (Don since 1939 and Jim took over in 1974 as second generation) I can appreciate the time, effort, and generosity of a man who has passed on and may have never had the chance to edit or hire an editor like a professional publisher, although those large publishers are sometime guilty of bigger mistakes. From Don's website: Family owned and operated since 1939, Don Schmidt Nursery is located in Boring, Oregon. After the passing of Jim Schmidt in December of 2009, Eric Schmidt took over the direction of Don Schmidt Nursery continuing his father's legacy specializing in Japanese Maple, Kousa Dogwood and Flowering Cherry varieties. Don Schmidt Nursery holds the patent for the Heart Throb Dogwood and is responsible for introducing the Emperor I, Acer Japonicum, Yama Kagi, and the Fireworks Dogwood to the landscaping market as well as several other varieties. The nursery has been featured in American Nurseryman, The Digger andSunset Magazine as well as in local publications. Photographs of Don Schmidt Nursery stock appear inJapanese Maples: third edition by J.D. Vertrees and Peter Gregory to illustrate superior foliage and color within different varieties. http://www.donschmidtnursery.com/Images/Digger Article.pdf
I don't think he was out to win respect. I think he was sharing his knowledge of the cultivar characteristics and a wonderful library of photographs, many of which are not available online or in published books. Given his depth of experience in the field, I'm happy to read his observations and comparisons, and worry less about spelling and editing.
I have added the resource to the Maple Resources (corrected the location), as several people have expressed their thanks for being made aware of it. I have copied all the postings in this thread to the Maple Resources discussion thread (corrected the location), and in the resource listing above, I put a link to the discussion thread. I plan to delete this thread, but am just going to close it for now, as the contents are now in the resources discussion thread, which is the appropriate place, and discussion is open there.
Thank you for looking after me, Michael. I put off doing this until I thought I could concentrate (having trouble doing that while staring out at palm trees in Waikiki), but then I did two Gymnosperm updates before doing this one. I hope I have moved everything to where it belongs, and will now correct what I said in my original typing here.
