Coming-of-age ceremony of Nomura maple

A change was found in Nomura maple in my garden.
Nomura maple flowered and fruited for the first time this year.

More than 20 years have passed since I got a young tree 30cm tall at a gardening shop.

This page was made to celebrate the coming-of-age ceremony of Nomura maple.

On 'Nomura' maple The Nomura maple which was well known since old days has been called 'Nomura-kaede' or 'Musashino' and is a cultivars of Acer amoenum. At the beginning of spring its leaves are reddish purple covered with gray soft hairs. The top surface of the leaf is dark reddish purple, and the undersurface of the leaf is greenish reddish purple. In summer, the leaves under the sunlight show reddish purple, but the leaves show green under the shade, and the character of 'Nomura' is weakened. The autumn color of the leaves becomes more bright red than purple as the following photograph shows. In this sense it is also called 'Shichi-henge', that is to say, "Seven changes".

The purplish red wings shining against the sunlight were impressive.

This magenta seemed to me a very dear color.

I will toast to the magenta samara and show some scenes of this maple as follows.

Male flowers and samaras (female flowers) are seen.

It was for the first time that it showed flower bud.

New leaves in 2012

Let me show you the colored leaves in this winter.

The leaves which not shed but curled, were revived into colored leaves by the winter gentle rain.

Next is autumn colored 'Nomura' of last year.

The colored leaves of this Nomura maple were the brightest in this garden in 2011.

Next is Nomura maple in 1996, 16 years ago.

The Nomura maple 16 years ago, it is less than 1 meter tall.

As above mentioned, Nomura maple is a cultivars of Acer amoenum.

Acer amoenum in nature (from Hokkaidoh)

In this way, this Nomura maple showed bright autumn colored leaves last year,
and showed surprising colored leaves in this winter,
and showed the first flowers & seed this spring.

I toast Nomura maple!

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