▷ A maple tree in the yard makes a big change to your entire backyard vision

Maple is one of the most beautiful trees – sung in Lithuanian folklore, prized by oriental wise men and sages, growing in many courtyards, courtyards and parks. Lithuanian maple, Japanese maple – what do we call these names and what should you choose for your garden? Read how to choose the right one for your lot and how a tree like maple can make a big difference in your yard: With modern tools, it’s even possible to Nowin November!

AUTUMN – THE FIFTH SEASON

Maples are impressive in their own way foliage. Cut leaves decorate the tree, and in autumn it is simply impossible to resist the play of colors. Some Eastern countries appreciate the autumn foliage of maple leaves so much that they distinguish this period as another season. You too can enjoy the beautiful colors of maple leaves that can beautify the garden and give it a distinctive look in autumn. It’s dark everywhere and you have a bright yellow or red tree in your yard, that would be cute, right?

The maple flowers should also not be underestimated. Common maple rings they are impressive: the color of the salad explodes with all the strength of spring. Flowers of different varieties look very different, they can be really interesting.

Additionally, maples are woody and attract bees, which is essential for a healthy environmental balance. Fresh maple sap in spring on your table: an excellent healthy drink, full of life and strength. It is very simple to make maple syrup from the sap, a natural and delicious substitute for sugar and jam.

You can plant a maple at any time, whether large or small – it is possible even now in autumn, read on. But before planting, the most important question is: how to choose?

LITHUAN MAPLE

You will hardly find real maples in Lithuania, more often maples grow in mixed forests or, specially planted, in parks and farms. The common maple (Acer platanoides) has been revered by Lithuanians since ancient times for its height, beautiful crown shape and beautiful leaves. Ingė Auželienecourses”Farm landscaping” teacher, says that Lithuanians loved maple no less than linden. Therefore, it is not surprising that maple was often grown on the farm as the main accent of the yard, as a solitaire.

If you are now wondering what kind of tree your farm is missing that is beautiful, casts shade in summer and fulfills traditions, look for a maple that perfectly embodies all these requirements. Additionally, the docent says that the maple is one of those trees that grows quite quickly, so you won’t have to wait until several generations have grown to see the shape of the maple’s canopy and feel the shadow it casts. The maple grows to a height of 20-30 m.

The common maple has wonderful leaf colors in autumn – but there’s no need to say anything else about it. If you want a greater effect, choose rsoft maple (lat. Acer Rubrum). In spring it blooms with red flowers, in summer its leaves are green, and in autumn they are so uprooted that you can paint pictures just by looking at them. Here is a true autumn beauty.

You wouldn’t know it on all maples – for example, Crimson King or Royal Red maples have purple or red leaves in the summer, but in the fall the leaves darken, turn brown and fall off. So their beauty is not in autumn.

Also the common maple ‘Drummondii’ more impressive not in autumn: In spring the young leaves have a beautiful pink color, and in summer the cut leaves are decorated with white edges – they look charming. But in autumn the leaves simply turn brown.

The circular maple (Acer Circinatum) is also interesting. It grows more like a bush and the winged fruits are pink. Photographed in the VU Botanical Garden in Vilnius. End of September, photo L. Liubertaitė

Therefore, if you want a beautiful composition of maples all year round, I. Auželienė recommends planting them several trees of different varieties in one group. Then in the spring some will pay attention, in the summer others and in the autumn the third.

The specialist advises choose the big ones on the farm traditionally grown trees instead of very neat looking, “cultivated” ones. The ‘Globosum’ maple, for example, has a clear, spherical shape – it would look artificial on a farm. Japanese-style trees with colorful leaves would also look strange in a country house.

JAPANESE MAPLE

In all seriousness, Japanese style does not always have anything to do with Japan, and Japanese maple is not necessarily associated with oriental style. And in general, “Japanese maple” is sometimes called any type of maple, as long as it is shorter, with more cut leaves and at least somewhat similar to a bonsai.

In fact, if you do not want a garden in a traditional or naturalistic style, but a modern, minimalist, oriental one, in that case it would be more suitable to grow not a large common maple, but one that only reaches 1 or 2 m in height, but which is brighter, more architectural.

It would suit that palm maple (lat. Acer palmatum) cultivar – in Lithuania you will find a wide variety of leaves, from green to orange. Although many of them grow up to a dozen meters, the climate in Lithuania is not the most favorable for them, it is often cold, so it is rare for them to grow taller than 2 years, often they look more like a bush than a tree. Maybe that’s all you need for a small modern plot: to be clearly visible to the eye and make a beautiful yard accent. Plant it in the center of the ground, plant it in a large raised bed so that it is as if on a pedestal and you can clearly see what the highlight of this yard is.

Further helpHandmade maples will need: mulching or even covering for the winter, protecting them from diseases. If there are drafts in the plot, abandon such a maple, because it needs shelter, a good microclimate. In Lithuania they would adapt better in the western part of the country: the fifth zone of plant hardiness begins there, i.e. the climate is a little milder than in the eastern part of Lithuania.

If you decide that an oriental-style maple would be suitable for your garden, take serious care of it and prepare for the joys and disappointments of failure.

WHEN TO PLANT A MAPLE

Like any other tree, it is best to plant maples in spring. You can buy common or red maples in the office – ask in spring, dig up and replant immediately on your plot. Since the branches are damaged, the younger the tree, the better the recovery will be. On the other hand, the younger the maple, the longer you will have to wait to see a significant difference in your texture.

If you want a better solution or are looking for an exclusive maple variety, please contact nurseries. Maples grown in pots (or containers) grow well because the roots are minimally damaged when transferred to the soil. Grown in this way, you can transplant it at any time of the year, except in winter, when you cannot plant a spade due to frost.

Most maples sold at nurseries and plant sites are not grown in Lithuania, so be sure to read the label carefully and look for the specific variety. Don’t buy maples with a hardiness zone of 6 or higher, because it is simply too cold to grow them in Lithuania.

HOW TO FUNDAMENTALLY CHANGE THE IMAGE OF THE PLOT

There is another option that deserves a separate mention. If you want the plot image to change immediately and significantly, replant it now mature maple. Not a small plant, not a young and tender maple, but an immediately serious tree. If you plant a maple tree on bare, empty ground, the intimacy will change beyond recognition. A large tree, compared to a young fresh plant, immediately gives changes:

Visually strengthens the frame of the plot,
it casts a shadow in summer,
gives a feeling of luxury, maturity.

If you are creating a new environment, you can save on flowers, but a tree will work wonders. And on a farm where something is missing, but you don’t understand what, a large tree can provide all the answers.