Hello everyone, I've got a spot perfect for a pseudoplatanus cultivar, but I'm having one heck of a time making up my mind on which one to get. Leaves with variegation or bright spring color are all appealing to me. So, in your personal opinion, which cultivar really stands out? Many have seemingly similar characteristics (Brilliantissimum vs. Prinz Handjery vs. Puget Pink - or Esk(imo) Sunset vs. Prince Camille de Rohan vs. Leopoldii vs. Simon Louis Freres - etc.) but having never seen them in person it's hard to figure out which one to go with. Which one(s) really impress you? Christian
Re: What is your favorite pseduoplatanus cultivar? A very old and large specimen of the wild type is by far the nicest!
Re: What is your favorite pseduoplatanus cultivar? first Nietzii,second Brillantissimun.........................Eskimo sunset..........Leopoldii.......P.Hardey ciao
Christian, I love the variegated pseudoplatanuses and I have pretty much all of them that are in this coun- try and choosing 1 is like choosing the favorite of your children but why I choose Eskimo Sunset is the loveliness of looking up from below into the leaves & canopy on a sunny day. The trans- lucence of the variegation coming thru the purple underside is breathtaking. The variegated pseudos almost remind me of Jackson Pollock gone nuts splashing white paint on green with his paintbrush. All the pink first blush of pleated leaves on Brilliantissimum & Puget etc are delicately lovely but they stay that way far too briefly whereas the variegates are all Spring & Summer. Good luck and Go Huskers!
If you can plant only one, be careful that it's not going to get too large for it's location. Although I love the pink-leafed cultivars like brilliantissimum, it's true they are only spectacular for a short time. Of the variagates, it makes sense to differentiate between those that have purple leaf undersides, (a la atropurpureum). Simon Louis Freres, for example doesn't have this feature so the leaves are less interesting from below than say Esk Sunset. But SLF comes out a dark pink that lasts for a very long time, so the variegation is quite unique. Esk has the feature that the underside is only purple where the surface is green. This makes for a very "Pollock" display, as Mike mentions. However the tree seems vigorous, I wonder how big it will get. Same is true for Prince Camille, a fast grower with even darker undersides and more tern than Esk or SLF. Brigada Rev is very small with solid bright purple undersides and an almost orange/cream leaf color, only somewhat splashed with dark green. IIRC Nizetti also has the atropurpureum aspect but the purple is not as bright as Brigada, nor is the cream color the same. And of course Nizetti and Leopoldii will make very large trees eventually. -E
The eventual size of the tree is why I can choose only one. Thank you all for your input, it's nice to read the opinions of other maple-lovers and hear about the different characteristics that appeal to different people. The descriptions are wonderful (Pollock-like!), they really help convey the beauty of the trees. Do the trees with pink spring color mature to a distinctive shade of green? Though in all likelihood I'll go with a variegate (sorry Michael, I had my mind set on a cultivar) - the point that the variegation is noticeable both spring and summer is a good one. Of the ones with purple on the underside of the leaf, is there much difference in the patterns of variegation on the top, or is the difference more in the emerging and mature color of the creamy/yellow areas? It's hard to determine from online photo searching. Also, is Nizetti available in the US? Since I'm looking for a tree that gets big, I'll leave Brigada Rev off the list (and based on an earlier thread I don't think I can get one). Katsura - With Osborne back in control as AD, hopefully things will only get better!
Christian, how much sun does your spot get? Prince Camille takes sun really well, but Esk seems to burn a little. Of course if Mike can grow it in sun in Novato, it's just that mine isn't established enough yet. Trees like SLF and of course Brilliantissimum are very slow growing indeed and need pretty heavy shade most of the day. I have Brill, Puget Pink, Miracle Rose and Leat's Cottage as pink cultivars. They all bleach out to fairly mundane light green, perhaps Brill is the most interesting as the leaves stay quite translucent. -E
Emery, The tree will get mostly dappled shade, with occasional direct sun during the morning and early afternoon hours. From your experience, the growth rates of Esk Sunset and Prince Camille are similar - both vigorous - but Prince Camille takes sun better? Of the two which do you prefer solely based on the aesthetics of the tree? I know it's not really a fair question to ask a collector, as every tree has it's own merit, I unfortunately just have room for one. Thanks! Christian
oh ,oh yesss! i see one similar is in Wakerhust...now i change.. first: old and large speciment ;-)))