Japanese maple 'Bloodgood'

Japanese maple 'Bloodgood' (Acer palmatum 'Bloodgood') – a cultivar of deciduous trees of the species Japanese maple of the genus Acer of the family Sapindaceae (or Aceraceae). One of the oldest forms cultivated in the USA. It is named after the Bloodgood nursery, founded in 1793 on Long Island, where this cultivar was obtained. The cultivar received the prestigious AGM (Award of Garden Merit).

It is a decorative deciduous shrub or a small tree with a rounded crown. It reaches 4-6 m in height and up to 6 m in width. It grows slowly.

Leaves opposite, 5-10 cm long and up to 12 cm wide, 5-7-lobed, divided to the middle, margins slightly serrated, petioles long, up to 5 cm; color when unfolding and throughout the summer ranges from dark purple to black-red, becoming bright red in autumn.

Flowers small, gathered in erect, sparsely flowered corymbs of 10-20 flowers; each flower has five red or purple sepals and five whitish petals. Stamens 8. Ovary glabrous. Blooms in May.

Fruits – samaras up to 2 cm long, diverging at an obtuse angle or oriented almost horizontally, curved. Maturing samaras are red. Later they turn light gray and hang, decorating the tree, throughout the winter. Fruits ripen in September.

Hardiness zone: 5-8 (-29°C).

Site: requires attention to soil and air moisture. It is recommended to plant in locations protected from cold winds and intense sun. Optimal acidity — pH 6.0 - 7.5

Planting: The root collar at ground level; for plants that produce abundant root suckers, slightly buried up to 5 cm. If groundwater is close, drainage of crushed stone 10-20 cm thick is necessary. Soil mix: humus or peat-compost, topsoil, sand in a 3:2:1 ratio. Mineral fertilizer (120-150 g nitroammofoska) can be added to the planting hole.

Watering: After planting - 20 L per plant. Most maples can tolerate dry soil, but grow better with watering. Watering rate in the dry season: 10-20 L per plant once a week. With normal rainfall: 10-20 L per plant once a month.

Care: Young plants should be covered with conifer branches around the root collar in severe winters when snow cover is insufficient. If shoots are damaged by frost, one-year shoots should be pruned. The crown will recover due to new shoots that have time to lignify before the onset of frosts. Standard (single-stem) plants in the first 2-3 years after planting should be protected from frost cracks by wrapping the trunk with burlap in 1-2 layers. Their winter hardiness increases with age.

Pruning: can be grown in bonsai style. Requires sanitary pruning.

Pests: whitefly, mealybug, leaf weevil.

Diseases: powdery mildew, black spot

Propagation: The fruits after collection are sown in the ground or stored in a cool dry place at 0 — 5 °C and humidity 10 — 15%, and before spring sowing they are stratified at 0 — 3 °C in moist sand for 2 months. Sowing depth 1.5 — 2 cm. Germination of fully developed seeds 60 — 65%.

Uses: a beautiful ornamental tree with an oval crown, unusual leaf shape and color, and attractive flowers. Used in solitary and group plantings in parks, squares, and along pathways.