Hello, There's bed in our backyard that is just screaming for 'something'. Details: zone: 5b Light: 2-3 hours of morning sun then dappled shade. Wind: from the west, location is sheltered. Direction: northfacing but sheltered. Gardening experiece: 20 years of thriving shrubs/perennials/bulbs, etc. JM experience: Only a little. A 5 yr old Bloodgood only leafed out at the bottom this year. Thanks to "mr shep's" advice, it's growing back in leaps and bounds. A "Waterfall" is doing excellently - it had new growth shortly after planting last year and hasn't stopped growing ever since. But that's it for my JM experience. Currently in the bed: There's a dwarf Mugho pine and several Coral Beauty Cotoneaster which are excellent together, but they are all short and all green and well, boring. A 2-3M red dissectum JM would add height, colour and texture. After some reading both on this site and elsewhere, there appears to be two varieties available in our area that are moderate growers and not too delicate -- INABA SHIDARE and EVER RED CUTLEAF. If the choice were yours, with all the details above, which would you choose? Many thanks in advance!...vc
I would choose an 'Ever Red' over a 'Inaba shidare'. For you 'Ever Red' will hold its color longer as most 'Inaba shidare' in recent years in the nursery trade are actually 'Oregon Garnet'. There is no real guarantee the Maple you are buying as 'Ever Red' will be the right cultivar either, so I'd stick to a reputable retail nursery that will guarantee the plant for a year in case you lose it in that time frame. Ever Red is less fussy a grower than 'Inaba shidare' is and can tolerate more sunlight during the day. Also, the true form 'Ever Red' can handle wind caused leaf desiccation much better than 'Inaba shidare' can. The single most important growing aspect to me that makes my mind up is that 'Ever Red' will produce new growth at various stages during the growing season whereas 'Inaba shidare' and 'Oregon Garnet' grown here seemingly only put out new growth in the Spring and again in late Summer. I like both Maples, actually all three but if given a choice I'd go with 'Ever Red'. Jim
Thanks Jim, that's exactly the kind of comparison I was looking for. From your very experienced account, an "Ever Red" stands a much better chance of thriving than an "INABA SHIDARE" and will provide the "punch" that whole area needs. Thanks again..vc
