Landscaping With Japanese Maples

Learn which USDA hardiness zone your landscaping will be placed in. Eliminate Japanese Maples that are not hardy to your USDA hardiness zone. Most Japanese Maples grow well in USDA hardiness zones 6 through 9. A few varieties grow well in Zone 5. Many Japanese Maple nurseries print USDA hardiness zone maps on the care tags that accompany Japanese maples. You can also find the information in almanacs and gardening books.

Measure the size of space that you have for a Japanese Maple. This will help you to determine which tree variety to use. An upright variety of Japanese maple such as bloodgood that can grow up to 25 feet in height may overwhelm a courtyard where a dwarf variety such as beni hoshi that grows no taller than 6 feet in height will fit well.

Look over your landscape design to determine which shape of Japanese maple would be most harmonious in your landscape. Upright forms of Japanese maple such as a 12-foot yellow bird Japanese maple may block a first story window, but would fit well if planted near a blank wall or in an island planting. Low-growing shrub maples such as emerald lace, which may reach 10 feet tall and 10 feet wide, may overwhelm a sidewalk in a border planting.

Examine photos of Japanese maple varieties in all seasons and light. The leaves of many Japanese maple, such as moonfire, may appear bright red in sunlight, but may have a greenish or bluish tint in shade. These leaves may darken from bright red to a deep red as fall approaches. Other Japanese maples such as tiger rose may have variegated leaves that change colors many times as the seasons progress. Choose a maple with a leaf color that either accents or contrasts with the flowers and vegetation of the plants that you plant the tree alongside. For example, the red leaves of a Japanese maple contrast well against the deep green needles of a spruce tree.

Pair Japanese maples with other landscaping plants to make a simple design with a clear pattern. Landscaping designs with Japanese maples may follow a theme, such as a Japanese garden. They can be designed with color in mind, such as a monochromatic garden. Or they can be designed to showcase plants year-round, like a four seasons garden. Use the fewest possible plants in the fewest possible varieties for a less cluttered look. Simple landscaping design allows a visitor a chance to relax. By contrast, a cluttered design adds to a visitor's stress by creating tension.