Acer palmatum 'STARFISH' Japanese maple

Starfish is a Japanese maple variety with utterly unique leaves which do recall tentacles of the sea creature of the same name. The leaves are palmately divided into commonly 5 narrow fingers with downwardly curved margins. They are deciduous, vivid red as they emerge, deep maroon when mature, and again bright red in autumn.

Starfish maple grows moderately into a well-branched, broadly vase-shaped shrub, reaching about 2 m in both height and width in maturity. It was found and selected among many other maple seedlings by a Dutch grower of magnolias, maples and dogwoods Piet Vergeldt from Lottum. It was granted a European patent No. 33203 in 2012.

Japanese maples need constantly moist soil that has to be well-drained, acidic to neutral, and medium fertile. Keep it mulched all year round. It loves a location with high air humidity, e.g. at a river bank or near a pond but it is not a must. Starfish will grow in full sun as well as partial shade where it will keep its red leaves unlike most other red-leaved maple varieties which tend to gain more green shades without direct sunlight. It is disease tolerant. It hardy and expected to withstand temperatures down to at least -27 °C (USDA zone 5b), and is suitable for outdoor planters, too, if kept moist without a saucer.

Last update 02-01-2023