© The Dabney Nursery
Plant: Red Dragon - Japanese Maple
Japanese Maple · Acer palmatum var. dissectum 'Red Dragon'
Size: 5 gal
Light
Bloom
Mature size
More about this plant
Red Dragon is a compact, slow growing dissected Japanese maple that matures over time into an upright pendulous mound of roughly 6 to 10 feet tall and 8 to 12 feet wide. Its seven lobed leaves are cut deeply to the leaf base, producing a lacy appearance, and emerge bright cherry red before maturing to a burgundy purple red that it is reputed to keep better than any other lace leaf, even in shade. Fall brings a bright apple red to crimson. It is a very hardy weeper for zones 5 to 9, preferring a moist, well drained soil and shelter from hot afternoon sun, and it suits a container, a patio or a small bed.
- Part Shade
- Grows to 10 ft tall and 12 ft wide
- Blooms in spring
- Hardy in USDA zones 5-9
- Deciduous foliage
Plant description
Red Dragon is a compact, slow growing dissected Japanese maple that matures over time into an upright pendulous mound of roughly 6 to 10 feet tall and 8 to 12 feet wide. Its seven lobed leaves are cut deeply to the leaf base, producing a lacy appearance, and emerge bright cherry red before maturing to a burgundy purple red that it is reputed to keep better than any other lace leaf, even in shade. Fall brings a bright apple red to crimson. It is a very hardy weeper for zones 5 to 9, preferring a moist, well drained soil and shelter from hot afternoon sun, and it suits a container, a patio or a small bed.
- Flowers
- Small red to purple flowers appear in spring; attractive viewed closely but insignificant from a distance.
- Foliage
- Seven lobed leaves cut deeply to the leaf base, giving a lacy appearance; bright cherry red on emergence, maturing to a burgundy purple red that holds even in shade, and turning bright apple red to crimson in fall.
- Fruit
- A schizocarp of two samaras with incurved wings forming an arch, becoming reddish in fall.
- Bark & stems
- Young stems vary from green to polished reddish brown; older branches assume a gray cast.
- Light
- Morning Sun, Dappled/Filtered Light
- Native range
- Japan, China, Korea, eastern Mongolia and southeastern Russia
