Hi all.
I read in the JM Forum that some JM's do better in part-shade but I'm looking to plant one for my front yard which is FULL TEXAS SUN. Can you recommend a Japanese Maple that will still thrive in this condition?
JM's for Texas FULL SUN?
I'm afraid they will burn to a crisp.
Dang it. That's what I was afraid of. Thanks for posting!
Tir, you can try a maple called Acer Truncatum - Shantung Maple. There is a cultivar named red phoenix patented by Metro Maples in Ft. Worth that has red tones in the spring and fall. The shantung has almost the same leaf structure as the acer palmatum but not the brilliant red fall colors. The spring colors are dynamite though. I have seen them bright purple to pink. Mine is usually pink in the spring. This tree can get up to 40' so its a bit larger then a palmatum, but you can prune it back like all maples or get a small one with more than one trunk.
I have pretty much given up on japanese maples! You need 100% shade in Texas for them to be happy and lots of salt free water.
I have two JM's. One is about 10 years old and the other is 2 years old. The oldest is planted in a large pot and gets full sun until about 1:00 pm. I've not had any problems with it. In the past it's been in full sun until later in the day and it did have leaf scorch, but didn't hurt the tree. The other 2 year old is in the ground. It's in full sun almost all day. It is just now starting to have a little leaf scorch on the edges of the leaves but still looks good. The two types I have are Kamagata (in pot) and Atropurpureum in ground.
Looks like a perfect microclimate right next to the pool. Do you have lots of mature tree's that shade your property?
No large trees. We had two large ash trees when we moved in three years ago. Unfortunately, both were 35 years old and on the decline. One of them was rotting from the inside out and both had to be removed. The only trees we have of any size are a few pines and a fully mature ornamental pear and they are all in the front of the house. Nothing in the back but esperanza, hameila, iris, copper plants, hibiscus, brugmansia, sage, day lilies, ixora, blue daze, camelias, hydrangeas, plumbago, duranta, sanseveria, plumeria, melampodium, turk's cap, plectranthus, abelia, begonias, flame acanthus....well, I guess I shouldn't have said only since this is a pretty good list, just no trees.
Mabye its the hot wind in DFW that is killing mine. That one you have out in the open would last about a week here. Maybe less with all the hardscape you have there.
I had asked some questions about the Japanese Maples in another thread. But since they are being discussed here I'll ask again.
I live halfway between Hou and Dallas and am wondering if I would have any luck growing some of these trees. We have very large oak trees that shade parts of our yard so they would have some shade. I don't know a thing about JMs. I would hate to spend $45 or $50 for one and have it die. :( Our soil ph is 6.2 classified as mildly acidic. I would prefer to put one in the ground.
Any thoughts on this? I'm not familiar with the different names and species.
Lin
If you have shade for them and a windscreen, they should do well. But I have had horrible luck with mine. I lost a 5 gallon Seiryu in last years freeze while other 1 gallons lived. I am getting rid of mine because they are too dang picky and absolutely refuse to thrive in hot windy areas. My house is brand new and no one on the block has mature trees. On the flip side, my older brother has lots of shade and his do well. They are near his pool. Maybe the pool creates a microclimate for them. Most of the j maples i've seen in N Texas that thrive are all around water features. Anybody in DFW want a deal on a 10 gal waterfall and a Beni Otake send me a pm.
Hmmmm maybe I better just forget about it. lol I don't have a water feature and we do have winds. Guess I'll just stick to other pretty understory trees.
Lin
I haven't had luck with Japanese Maples or Dogwoods. You're right Dancey, they're too expensive to try again and again. But I love them both :(
Crow:
I always thought Elm's lived waaaay longer than that? There is a new pest attacking the many forests of elm's up north. My friend in Michigan said it's a non-native insect going around eating them up...you can be highly fined for transporting even camping wood within the state of Michigan this year...trying to contain the spread. Perhaps it won't affect us down here though....since elm's are so few and far between...beautiful trees!
We have one beautiful elm tree in our yard. It is a very old tree and so far it appears to be disease free. It has beautiful color in the fall.
Oh I love the elm!
I wonder if crowellli's elms were siberian elm or some other non-native elm. They were overplanted in the 60's (I think it was) and have almost all died out since.
The American Elms and Cedar Elms, which are native, last much longer. Dutch Elm disease does show up in Texas, but thankfully it's very rare.
I have to add my praise to the elms. We have several American Elms and a few Cedar elms that are natural to our lot and the surrounding creek lots. (plus we have two builder placed Cedar elms in front). I never realized what a beautiful canopy the American Elms make until we bought the house. They are native, but not as common as some other trees so I'd never really experienced them. The canopy on the group of three in my back yard is at least 75 feet wide. :-) My bird feeders, hammock and shade bed are located there .
The Elm tree that's in our yard was here when we moved here so I don't know the name of it. I do know it's a native elm to this area.
They do put out pretty shade.
Mine weren't elms, they were ash trees. Builders typically put them in here because they grow fast, but aren't very long lived. I hated to cut them, but they were a danger to the house since they were rotting from the inside of the trunk. I love elms, but don't have any. I've also had horrible luck with dogwoods. My JM's are doing really well though!
LOL Isn't funny how our eyes see something that's not there. I read Tir na Nog's comment, went and re-read your thread, and saw "Elm", because of her comment. The power of suggestion...
We also have Ash's here on the creek. I thought maybe I was lucky enough to have Texas Ash, but it looks like they are Green Ash. They do grow fast and there are several saplings. There are some beautiful multi-trunked ones though.
Crow: I don't know where I picked up "elm" from! Sorry for the mistake everyone!
LOL Too funny! Tir my eyes just picked up the word elm tree and I ran with it.
Anyway we have had a good discussion on both elm and ash trees. ;)
Lin
I know what y'all mean. I'm always reading something wrong, and I can't even tell ya' the number of times I've looked at a clock wrong and arrived somewhere an hour or more early. It's happened often enough I've wondered if I'm dyslexic. That or maybe just getting more blind! The ash trees here were Arizona ash. Silly me, when we bought the house there were so many live oaks in the neighborhood I thought our two big trees were the same. I definitely know the difference, but just didn't pay close enough attention. That gets me into so much trouble!