Japanese maples summer care

Japanese maples deserve a place in every garden. One of the most beloved trees we grow, they owe their popularity due to the staggering range of colours that changes through the seasons, their distinctively-shaped foliage and for being very suitable for growing in pots or small gardens. Although they are very easy to grow and care for, they will benefit from a bit of help during the heat of summer.

Here are a couple tips for keeping your Japanese maples (botanical name: Acer palmatum) looking strong and robust in the long hot days of summer.

1. Keep the soil or compost well-watered and never let them dry out. If the leaves on your Japanese maples appear dry or scorched in summer, this is likely to be a lack of moisture. This is, by far, the main cause of dieback. Most Japanese maples will grow happily in direct sun if they are kept well-watered, which means once a day during hot weather if they are in a pot, and two or three times a week if planted in the ground. If not, plant them where they will get shade for part of the day.
2. Position your Japanese maple out of strong winds, especially in the spring when new leaves are emerging. If these delicate new leaves get hit by strong winds they will dry out more quickly than your tree can get water up to them.

These two tips will keep your Japanese maples healthy and vigorous all summer and they will reward you with incredible autumn colours. We still have a large variety of Japanese maples available such as Acer palmatum ‘Dissectum’, ‘Orange Dream’, ‘Firecracker’, ‘Orangeola’ and ‘Jerre Schwartz’ among others.

All of these Japanese maples will grow happily in pots as well as in the ground and provide a wonderful feature tree and focal point in any garden.