Acer nipponicum

Acer nipponicum is one of two species belonging to Section Parviflora (the other being A. distylum). Both are endemic to Japan, with A. nipponicum the more widespread of the two (Ogata 1965). The last of the maples to flower, its long, tassle-like inflorescences at first produce male flowers, and in some years don’t produce any females at all (van Gelderen, de Jong & Oterdoom 1994).

The species arrived in western collections later than most other Japanese maple species. It appears to only have arrived in Britain in 1940 (Edwards & Marshall 2019). It was evidently in mainland Europe prior to this; a well-known tree at the Zuiderpark, in The Hague, the Netherlands, was planted just before the start of World War II (van Gelderen, de Jong & Oterdoom 1994). It was purchased (under the synonym Acer brevilobum) from the Hesse Nurseries, Weener-Ems, Germany, by S.G. Albert Doorenbos, then Director of Municipal Parks and Gardens at The Hague (van Gelderen, de Jong & Oterdoom 1994). The tree is described in numerous texts as being the finest example in cultivation (le Hardÿ de Beaulieu 2003, van Gelderen, de Jong & Oterdoom 1994, Vertrees & Gregory 2009), and was recorded as 13 m tall in 1994 though may now be lost. It is, however, the source of many of the plants in cultivation, though the suggestion of van Gelderen, de Jong & Oterdoom (1994) that the species was set for a popularity boost owing to the fecundity of the Zuiderpark individual turned out to be a little optimistic; the species remains largely restricted to specialist collections. It does however reproduce in numerous places. A tree since lost at the Sir Harold Hillier Gardens produced many self-set seedlings, as does a tree at Herkenrode, Belgium (pers. obs).

The UK and Irish Champion is a tree at Dawyck in the Scottish Borders, measured at 14.5 m × 45 cm dbh in 2025 (The Tree Register 2025), which is also a source of trees in collections. A tree at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire was measured at 13.4 m in 2023 (The Tree Register 2025). Material gathered by Roy Lancaster in 1998 (LANC 2154) from Mount Shirouma, Honshu at 1560 m asl is represented in a number of collections. The largest at Westonbirt was measured at approximately 7 m tall in January 2026 (pers. obs.), while an individual at Howick Hall, Northumberland, was measured at 5 m in 2019 (The Tree Register 2025). A plant at Westonbirt grown from seed collected by Ben Jones on Mount Naeba, Honshu at 1227 m asl in 2013 has so far grown vigorously, and has begun to flower (pers. obs.). Material collected on RBG Kew’s Honshu expedition in 1996 (HONX 14) were previously recorded at Kew, but appear since lost (Royal Botanic Gardens Kew 2026). The species seems scarcely represented in North American collections and is not included by Jacobson (1996). Material previously recorded at The Morton Arboretum appears to have been lost (Morton Arboretum 1985 onwards).

The leaves of Acer nipponicum recall those of two snakebark maples, A. pensylvanicum and A. tegmentosum, though they are much thicker textured and somewhat rugose and, once felt, it is unlikely they would be confused with any other maple. The species is not particularly noted for its autumn colour which is usually dull, but like A. distylum, can also be a good, rich yellow. A. nipponicum struggles in hot, dry conditions without access to adequate moisture (which may explain the apparent loss of material at Kew in recent years). Plants at Westonbirt had dropped many of their leaves by mid August in the very dry summer of 2025, with those left appearing wilted and brown (pers. obs).

Two cultivar names have been associated with the species, both from trees grown at Westonbirt, UK. However, these names are merely reflective of their parentage, and the trees have no discernable differences from the typical form and the use of these names should be discontinued. ‘Dawy’ (this is not a typo!) is a seedling from the Dawck champion, while ‘Adisondack’ was raised from seed of the Zuiderpark specimen. The largest of these at Westonbirt was measured at 10 m tall in 2024 (The Tree Register 2025). Propagation of the species appears to be exclusively by seed; grafting onto species belonging to other Sections within Acer has proved impossible (le Hardÿ de Beaulieu 2003).