I have what I am told is a Japanese Maple, but I am unable to find out any info about the plant. The tag for the plant read Acer Palmatum "oh-say-shiki". It currently has green leaves that have seven points to each leaf, and finely serated edges on the leaf. It appears to be well developed and at least 7-10 years old. Any help would be great, i need to know what is its growth habits, planting requirements, and just other general information. CK
Vertrees 3rd edition lists 'O sayo shiki' in appendix D, with no description. I don't find any reference elsewhere, but perhaps armed with the "correct" (all things being relative) spelling you'll find something. HTH -E
well i googled the new spelling and still came up with nothing about it? SO, if anyone still can help out would be great
The name looks like a play on the name Saoshika? In the case of your tree, the lobes of the leaves are not divided quite enough to be that plant, but it is close. The spelling "oh" is not correct by Japanese standards as the "oh" combination does not exist and it would likely be a "phoenetic" spelling common in Europe. Many of the plants in the Appendix D of Vertrees 3rd edition were true varieties while others were plant names that could not be confirmed or properly referenced, many from old Japanese catalogs and texts. In some cases, names of maples were regional in Japan and the same maple might have different names depending on where in the country it was being referenced. How someone would have come to use the name on your plant tag is quite remarkable--a european spelling of an obscure and possibly invalid Japanses name. I am guessing you will have a multi-branched shrub to maybe 8ft, but possibly shorter. The plant already is looking a bit aged and that it has slowed in growth, so I would not expect a good deal more vigorous growth given your photos.
well, I am now thinking of just returning the tree for another type that is a little more documented than this o sayo shiki or whatever it is. I do think it is a nice tree but to not know what its growth habits will definetly be is a problem, and i don't want to risk spending that much money on something no one really knows what it is.
Well, I finally found out what the tree is, I called Buckholz Nursery where the tree was first purchased from and the owner sent me this description after seeing the pictures: The tree is mis labled and should read. Acer palmatum 'Saoshika'. The description is: The star-shaped bright green foliage if this cultivar is of a rather thin and delicate texture. When backlit by the sun it appears almost transparent. The leaves are held out horizontally, making a layered effect in older portions of the plant. The new foliage is a bright yellow green, with the tips of the lobes tinged in red or carmine. This color is promident for the first weeks, and then the leaves gradually change to a uniform light green. as summer advances, the tones darken. The fall color is a stikinggolden yellow. Makes a tall bushy shrub. When mature it should reach 3 meters tall by 3 meters wide. Thanks everyone who helped and Galt for doing the word scramble to come up with the correct plant classification!
I think you can rest pretty easy that the plant will grow within the description given for Saoshika, but there are some issues with the foliage in that it may be just a bit off as I pointed out before. It could just be the foliage you pictured or just the culture, but you should look for a bit more division in the lobes as you continue to grow the plant. Look around at some of the online photo archives for maples using the correct plant name and let me know if they seem to represent what you have seen from the maple. It is hard for me to know given just the one snap shot. Saoshika is a very old maple and one that will have a good deal of accurate information written about it. I am glad Buchholz was able to help you out. It is nice to get a response from the source. Cheers!
