Best Japanese Maples for Australian Gardens

A practical cultivar guide to Japanese Maples that perform reliably in Australian conditions.

AcerFeature TreeJapanese Maple

Few trees earn their place in a garden the way a Japanese Maple does. For a deciduous feature, nothing else offers this range of leaf shape, form and colour, from soft greens and deep burgundies to laceleaf weepers that cascade like water, all on a tree that stays in scale in a courtyard or even a large pot.

The catch is that 'Japanese Maple' covers dozens of very different cultivars, and the right one depends entirely on your conditions and the look you are after. This guide covers every Acer palmatum we grow, how to choose between them, and how to keep them thriving in an Australian garden.

Choosing and growing Japanese Maples

Sun position and climate

All Japanese Maples want protection from hot afternoon sun and do best in part shade or morning sun. The green forms, such as the green Acer palmatum and 'Osakazuki', take the most sun. Purple forms like 'Bloodgood' and 'Atropurpureum' colour best with morning sun but need afternoon shade, and the finely cut laceleafs and the variegated 'Nishiki Fountain' are the most prone to scorch, so give them the most shelter. None suit humid coastal subtropics such as coastal Brisbane.

Upright or weeping form

The upright forms grow as small feature trees to 3 to 6 m and give height and structure: the green Acer palmatum, 'Atropurpureum', 'Bloodgood', 'Osakazuki' and the coral-bark 'Sango Kaku', plus the unusual upright laceleaf 'Seiryu'. The weeping laceleaf (dissectum) forms stay low and cascading, usually 1.5 to 2.5 m, and are ideal spilling over a wall or planted in a pot: 'Inaba Shidare', 'Waterfall', 'Orangeola', dissectum 'Green' and 'Nishiki Fountain'. The compact 'Shaina' sits between the two as a dwarf.

Choosing for colour

For the most dramatic autumn colour, choose 'Osakazuki' or the green-form Acer palmatum. For season-long burgundy that holds through summer, choose 'Bloodgood' or 'Atropurpureum'. For winter interest, 'Sango Kaku' lights up with coral-red bark once the leaves drop. For shifting, multi-season colour, 'Orangeola' moves through orange, bronze and back to orange. And for something different, 'Nishiki Fountain' brings cream variegation to a shaded spot.

Pots and small spaces

For pots, courtyards and tight spaces, choose the compact dwarf 'Shaina' or one of the weeping laceleafs such as 'Waterfall', 'Orangeola' or dissectum 'Green', which stay low and slow and hold their scale for years. Potted maples need a quality free-draining mix and consistent water, as they dry out and stress faster than plants in the ground.

Soil and planting

Every cultivar wants free-draining, humus-rich soil on the slightly acidic side, and all resent heavy, wet clay. On clay sites, plant high on a raised mound and improve the bed with compost. Shelter from strong wind, which tatters the fine foliage, and give the laceleaf and variegated forms the most protected position of all.

Watering, mulch and pruning

Keep the soil consistently moist through summer without waterlogging, and mulch deeply to hold moisture and keep the roots cool. Pruning needs are minimal across every cultivar: a light structural tidy in winter while the tree is dormant is usually all that is required, and the weeping forms need little more than the removal of any crossing stems.

1. Acer palmatum (Japanese Maple)

The maple everyone pictures: a soft, rounded canopy of palmate leaves that shift from lime to deep green to fire across the year. Quietly elegant in every season.

Type: Deciduous feature tree
Height: 3 to 5 m
Width: 2 to 4 m
Growth rate: Slow to moderate
Foliage: Palmate green turning orange-red
Form: Spreading rounded
Conditions: Part shade
Maintenance: Low
Best for: Courtyards and feature planting in cool to temperate gardens.

Why choose it

The benchmark green Japanese Maple and the most reliable performer in Australian gardens. Bright lime new growth in spring matures to a cool, deep green that holds beautifully through summer, then ignites into fiery orange and red in autumn. It is the all-rounder, the cultivar to choose when you want the classic maple in every season.

Perfect pair

Japanese Maple feature with a Bay hedge for shelter.

Tips for planting

Avoid hot afternoon sun. Mulch heavily.

Classic for a reason.

Shop Acer palmatum

2. Acer palmatum 'Sango Kaku' (Coral Bark Japanese Maple)

An upright, vase-shaped tree built around its glowing coral-red bark, set off by delicate lime-green foliage. A tree with two completely different looks across the year.

Type: Deciduous feature tree
Height: 4 to 5 m
Width: 3 to 4 m
Growth rate: Slow to moderate
Foliage: Lime-green turning soft gold
Form: Upright vase
Conditions: Part shade to morning sun
Maintenance: Low
Best for: Year-round interest, especially winter stem colour.

Why choose it

A standout year-round. In the cooler months the bare trunk and stems turn a brilliant coral-red, so even fully defoliated it remains a striking feature in the winter garden. Through spring and summer the lime-green palmate foliage is soft and fresh, before turning a gentle gold in autumn.

Perfect pair

Sango Kaku feature with an evergreen backdrop to set off the bark.

Tips for planting

Site where winter stems catch the light. Mulch heavily.

Colour even in winter.

Shop Acer palmatum 'Sango Kaku'

3. Acer palmatum dissectum 'Orangeola' (Orangeola Weeping Maple)

A low, weeping cascade of finely cut leaves that seem to change colour every time you look. One of the most animated small maples you can plant.

Type: Deciduous feature tree
Height: 1.5 to 2 m
Width: 2 m
Growth rate: Slow
Foliage: Orange-red new growth, green-bronze summer, orange autumn
Form: Weeping mound
Conditions: Part shade
Maintenance: Low
Best for: A long-season colour feature in courtyards and pots.

Why choose it

Grown for colour that never sits still. New growth flushes a vivid orange-red, settles to a deep green-bronze through the heat of summer, then returns to a brilliant burnt orange in autumn. Its weeping, cascading habit makes it as much a sculptural form as a colour feature, spilling softly over a pot or wall.

Perfect pair

Orangeola in a raised pot against a dark backdrop.

Tips for planting

Morning sun lifts the colour. Mulch heavily.

Colour all season long.

Shop Acer palmatum dissectum 'Orangeola'

4. Acer palmatum 'Nishiki Fountain' (Variegated Weeping Japanese Maple)

A soft fountain of cascading foliage brightened by cream variegation that catches the light. An unusual, refined take on the weeping maple.

Type: Deciduous feature tree
Height: 2 to 3 m
Width: 2 m
Growth rate: Slow
Foliage: Delicately variegated green
Form: Weeping fountain
Conditions: Part shade
Maintenance: Low
Best for: A distinctive feature for shaded courtyards and entries.

Why choose it

A rare variegated weeper for gardeners who want something different. The finely cut foliage is streaked and flecked with cream against soft green, giving a light, almost luminous quality that lifts a shaded courtyard where a plain green or purple maple would fall flat. The cascading, fountain-like form adds gentle movement to the planting.

Perfect pair

Nishiki Fountain as a lone feature in a courtyard bed.

Tips for planting

Protect from hot sun, which can burn the variegation. Mulch heavily.

A standout in the shade.

Shop Acer palmatum 'Nishiki Fountain'

5. Acer palmatum 'Shaina' (Shaina Dwarf Japanese Maple)

A neat, densely packed dome of deep red leaves on a naturally small frame. All the drama of a Japanese maple in a fraction of the space.

Type: Deciduous feature tree
Height: 1.5 to 2 m
Width: 1 to 1.5 m
Growth rate: Slow
Foliage: Dense deep red
Form: Compact upright
Conditions: Part shade to morning sun
Maintenance: Low
Best for: Pots, small courtyards and tight feature spots.

Why choose it

The maple for small spaces that refuses to compromise on colour. Its foliage emerges and holds a rich, deep red on a dense, tightly layered frame, and its dwarf habit keeps it in scale in a pot or courtyard for many years. A genuine feature plant where a full-size maple would quickly outgrow the spot.

Perfect pair

Shaina in a feature pot flanking an entry.

Tips for planting

Ideal in a large pot. Keep water up in summer.

Big colour, small footprint.

Shop Acer palmatum 'Shaina'

6. Acer palmatum 'Atropurpureum' (Burgundy Japanese Maple)

A spreading canopy of rich burgundy-purple that anchors a garden from spring right through to leaf fall. The most planted purple maple in Australia.

Type: Deciduous feature tree
Height: 3 to 5 m
Width: 2 to 4 m
Growth rate: Slow to moderate
Foliage: Burgundy palmate
Form: Spreading
Conditions: Part shade to morning sun
Maintenance: Low
Best for: Year-round colour contrast in cool to temperate gardens.

Why choose it

The classic burgundy maple and the easiest way to bring season-long colour to a garden. Where the green forms only colour in autumn, it leafs out a deep purple-red in spring and holds that richness right through summer, then deepens to crimson before leaf fall. Morning sun draws out the strongest colour.

Perfect pair

Burgundy Maple feature with a Bay or Murraya hedge backdrop.

Tips for planting

Morning sun gives the deepest leaf colour.

Constant colour, all season.

Shop Acer palmatum 'Atropurpureum'

7. Acer palmatum 'Bloodgood' (Bloodgood Japanese Maple)

A strong, upright tree clothed in the darkest purple-red foliage of any maple. Bold, architectural and impossible to ignore.

Type: Deciduous feature tree
Height: 4 to 5 m
Width: 3 to 4 m
Growth rate: Slow to moderate
Foliage: Deep blackish-red turning scarlet
Form: Upright rounded
Conditions: Part shade to morning sun
Maintenance: Low
Best for: A bold, reliable purple feature in cool to temperate gardens.

Why choose it

The benchmark upright purple maple, and the one to choose when you want dark colour that lasts. Its blackish-red foliage resists the summer fade that washes out lesser purple cultivars, then turns a brilliant scarlet in autumn. Stronger and more vigorous than most, it makes a bold, dependable feature tree.

Perfect pair

Bloodgood feature underplanted with clipped Buxus and Liriope.

Tips for planting

Morning sun deepens the colour. Shelter from hot afternoon sun.

The purple maple benchmark.

Shop Acer palmatum 'Bloodgood'

8. Acer palmatum 'Osakazuki' (Osakazuki Japanese Maple)

A vigorous, broad-canopied maple that spends most of the year in quiet green, saving everything for one extraordinary autumn.

Type: Deciduous feature tree
Height: 4 to 6 m
Width: 4 to 5 m
Growth rate: Moderate
Foliage: Green turning intense scarlet-crimson
Form: Upright spreading
Conditions: Part shade to morning sun
Maintenance: Low
Best for: A vigorous autumn-colour feature for larger cool to temperate gardens.

Why choose it

Quite simply the finest autumn colour of any Japanese Maple. Its broad green leaves carry the tree quietly through spring and summer, then in autumn turn an intense, even scarlet-crimson with none of the patchy fading seen in other cultivars. Vigorous and upright, it is the cultivar to plant purely for the autumn show.

Perfect pair

Osakazuki feature over a soft carpet of Ophiopogon.

Tips for planting

Avoid hot reflected heat. Mulch heavily.

Unmatched autumn scarlet.

Shop Acer palmatum 'Osakazuki'

9. Acer palmatum dissectum 'Seiryu' (Upright Laceleaf Maple)

Feathery, finely cut foliage carried upward on an open, upright frame rather than weeping to the ground. Lace texture with genuine height.

Type: Deciduous feature tree
Height: 3 to 4 m
Width: 2 to 3 m
Growth rate: Slow to moderate
Foliage: Feathery green turning gold-red
Form: Upright lace
Conditions: Part shade
Maintenance: Low
Best for: Courtyard and sheltered feature planting.

Why choose it

The rare upright laceleaf, and the answer when you want fine, feathery foliage without a low weeping form. Almost every other dissectum cascades, but Seiryu grows upward on an elegant frame, combining delicate lace texture with real height and structure. The green summer foliage turns warm gold and red in autumn.

Perfect pair

Seiryu feature with a Murraya hedge backdrop.

Tips for planting

Avoid hot reflected heat. Mulch heavily.

Lace foliage on an upright frame.

Shop Acer palmatum dissectum 'Seiryu'

10. Acer palmatum dissectum 'Inaba Shidare' (Weeping Purple Laceleaf Maple)

A flowing mound of finely dissected burgundy leaves that cascades like water over whatever it is planted above. The classic weeping purple maple.

Type: Deciduous feature tree
Height: 2 to 2.5 m
Width: 2.5 to 3 m
Growth rate: Slow
Foliage: Finely cut burgundy turning red
Form: Weeping mound
Conditions: Part shade
Maintenance: Low
Best for: Cascading over walls, rocks and water edges.

Why choose it

One of the best weeping purple laceleafs for holding its colour. The finely dissected burgundy foliage stays rich and deep through summer where many cut-leaf purples brown off, then deepens to red in autumn. Its flowing, cascading mound is made to spill over a wall, a rock edge or the lip of a large pot.

Perfect pair

Inaba Shidare spilling over a stone edge above Ophiopogon.

Tips for planting

Shelter from hot sun and wind. Mulch heavily.

A flowing purple cascade.

Shop Acer palmatum dissectum 'Inaba Shidare'

11. Acer palmatum dissectum 'Waterfall' (Green Weeping Laceleaf Maple)

A full, tumbling cascade of bright green lacework that lives up to its name. A soft, living waterfall of foliage.

Type: Deciduous feature tree
Height: 1.5 to 2 m
Width: 2 to 2.5 m
Growth rate: Slow
Foliage: Fresh green turning gold and crimson
Form: Weeping mound
Conditions: Part shade
Maintenance: Low
Best for: Raised beds, entrances and large pots.

Why choose it

A weeping green laceleaf grown for the quality of its cascade. Few green weepers form such a full, flowing mound, the finely cut foliage tumbling like its namesake before turning clear gold and crimson in autumn. Strong and reliable, it is one of the easiest weeping maples to establish and keep looking full.

Perfect pair

Waterfall cascading over a low Liriope border.

Tips for planting

Keep moist in summer. Shelter from wind.

A true cascading green.

Shop Acer palmatum dissectum 'Waterfall'

12. Acer palmatum dissectum 'Green' (Green Weeping Laceleaf Maple)

A low, gently weeping mound of soft green lace, fresh and unfussy. The quiet, versatile maple that suits almost anywhere.

Type: Deciduous feature tree
Height: 1.5 to 2 m
Width: 2 m
Growth rate: Slow
Foliage: Fresh green turning clear gold
Form: Weeping mound
Conditions: Part shade
Maintenance: Low
Best for: Pots, border edges and soft low features.

Why choose it

The timeless green weeping laceleaf and one of the most versatile maples we grow. Its soft, finely cut green foliage forms a low, neat cascading mound that suits a pot, a border edge or the front of a bed, then turns a clean, clear gold in autumn. Easy, forgiving and always elegant.

Perfect pair

Green weeper softening a path edge or pot.

Tips for planting

Keep moist in summer. Avoid hot afternoon sun.

A soft green classic.

Shop Acer palmatum dissectum 'Green'

Compare at a glance

Cultivar	Height	Width	Form	Foliage	Best if you…
Acer palmatum Japanese Maple	3 to 5 m	2 to 4 m	Spreading rounded	Palmate green turning orange-red	Courtyards and feature planting in cool to temperate gardens.
Acer palmatum 'Sango Kaku' Coral Bark Japanese Maple	4 to 5 m	3 to 4 m	Upright vase	Lime-green turning soft gold	Year-round interest, especially winter stem colour.
Acer palmatum dissectum 'Orangeola' Orangeola Weeping Maple	1.5 to 2 m	2 m	Weeping mound	Orange-red new growth, green-bronze summer, orange autumn	A long-season colour feature in courtyards and pots.
Acer palmatum 'Nishiki Fountain' Variegated Weeping Japanese Maple	2 to 3 m	2 m	Weeping fountain	Delicately variegated green	A distinctive feature for shaded courtyards and entries.
Acer palmatum 'Shaina' Shaina Dwarf Japanese Maple	1.5 to 2 m	1 to 1.5 m	Compact upright	Dense deep red	Pots, small courtyards and tight feature spots.
Acer palmatum 'Atropurpureum' Burgundy Japanese Maple	3 to 5 m	2 to 4 m	Spreading	Burgundy palmate	Year-round colour contrast in cool to temperate gardens.
Acer palmatum 'Bloodgood' Bloodgood Japanese Maple	4 to 5 m	3 to 4 m	Upright rounded	Deep blackish-red turning scarlet	A bold, reliable purple feature in cool to temperate gardens.
Acer palmatum 'Osakazuki' Osakazuki Japanese Maple	4 to 6 m	4 to 5 m	Upright spreading	Green turning intense scarlet-crimson	A vigorous autumn-colour feature for larger cool to temperate gardens.
Acer palmatum dissectum 'Seiryu' Upright Laceleaf Maple	3 to 4 m	2 to 3 m	Upright lace	Feathery green turning gold-red	Courtyard and sheltered feature planting.
Acer palmatum dissectum 'Inaba Shidare' Weeping Purple Laceleaf Maple	2 to 2.5 m	2.5 to 3 m	Weeping mound	Finely cut burgundy turning red	Cascading over walls, rocks and water edges.
Acer palmatum dissectum 'Waterfall' Green Weeping Laceleaf Maple	1.5 to 2 m	2 to 2.5 m	Weeping mound	Fresh green turning gold and crimson	Raised beds, entrances and large pots.
Acer palmatum dissectum 'Green' Green Weeping Laceleaf Maple	1.5 to 2 m	2 m	Weeping mound	Fresh green turning clear gold	Pots, border edges and soft low features.