Hi! I am hoping you folks will have some ideas. My husband has fallen in love with the idea of a Japanese maple, preferably one with kind of large red leaves. At the plant stores in the area, all the versions look spindly & kind of sick, so I'm contemplating buying on ebay. [I am originally from the Midwest, where non-Japanese maples proliferate, & I sure do miss them!] We are unfortunately in an apartment, thus our new baby would grow in a west-facing container on our balcony. We live in Brittany, France, but away from the ocean. I think this means we're zone 8 or 9: *lots* of rain & clouds, sun most days but never very hot -- never all-day sun or all-day shade, the weather changes constantly. Can anybody recommend 1-3 varieties that should be okay for this weather and for being in a pot? And of course that also have red leaves for the most part at least, & relatively thick ones? THANKS!
Well, there are MANY varieties, but some may be better suited for a pot than others. Of the more dwarf kind there is 'Beni hoshi', 'Englishtown' (more columnar), 'Pixie', and 'Shaina' that come to mind...
Theodora, there are lots of places to buy maples by mail order here. I'd suggest Adeline or Gaurat in France, or you could even order from Esveld in Holland, or one of the fine English dealers like Karen Junker. Just my opinion, I think ebay is a crap shoot. See the maple resources link on this site Your area is great for Japanese Maples, don't worry. I don't think you really need a dwarf, just something that doesn't get too big. Shojo should be available in France, I got mine in at a nursery near Le Mans. Otherwise Okagami will stay pretty small in a pot, (maybe 6 ft), or perhaps Chitose yama. You'll have to look around a little, the Esveld site is an excellent resource, or of course the cultivar gallery here. -E
You cannot have a plant sent from the US into Europe, it will be destroyed by customs. Follow the advice of Emery. Gomero
Thanks for all the suggestions. I will definitely look into the dealers you have mentioned, Emery. I had been looking at ebay in the EU, and will be careful if I decide to go that way. I do know about the restrictions from the US, which have gotten much stricter in the past few years, but thanks for the warnings! I see some warnings on the EM Maple / Dick van der Maat website about containers being not a good way to go, have you found this to be so? Finally, if I want to do this, is there an optimal time of the year to buy a plant to ensure it grows well? Thanks again for the quick answers! I am off to comb through photos on this & other sites to choose a few types...
