Paperbark Maple

The Paperbark Maple is an astonishingly impressive tree, with two wonderful features that make it special. The first is that it has really great autumn colour regardless of weather conditions; the green leaves become orange, scarlet and crimson before dropping. But the weird thing about this tree and the thing that makes it truly unique is the bark which is given to peeling all through the winter and which has a glowing amber to mahogany colour. It is almost impossible not to peel the bark which is good, because the tree reveals a darker brownish red under-bark which then peels throughout the following winter.

Originally the tree was a native of China and it was introduced to Europe and the USA in about 1901. It grows to around twenty feet tall and has a mature canopy of about twenty feet too, although in perfect conditions and without pruning it has been known to reach a height of thirty-three feet! While it is slow-growing, adding about twelve inches a year to both height and canopy is relatively free of diseases and insect pests. The Paperbark Maple grows best in well-drained soils but doesn’t seem overly bothered if they are acid or alkaline. In its native home it is often an undergrowth tree, hidden by taller specimens but landscape gardeners will now tend to grow it in a lawn or large tub to set off its wonderful colour and bark and because, in addition to these two glories, it has pretty yellow flowers in spring, and sets twin winged seed spinners in autumn, making it a feature all year round.

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