Acer davidii Viper®
Père David's Maple is a small deciduous tree growing to 10?15 m tall with a trunk up to 40 cm in diameter. It has a spreading crown of long arching branches. The bark is smooth, olive-green with regular narrow pale vertical stripes on young trees. The leaves are dark green above and paler below. They turn to bright yellow, orange or red in the autumn. The flowers are small, yellow, with five sepals and petals about 4 mm long.
Flowering period
Planting period
About this plant
Maple Acer
Maples (Acer) form a large genus of trees and shrubs, nearly all from the northern hemisphere and many from China. They range from small multi-stemmed trees to large shade trees. Their opposite, usually lobed leaves, colourful young growth, winged fruits and above all their fiery autumn colours make them garden classics.
Père David's Maple Acer davidii
David's maple, from the forests of central China, is the best-known snakebark maple. Its smooth bark is striped green and white, and the young twigs are purplish red. The leaves are often three-lobed on young plants and mostly unlobed later, turning yellow, orange and red in autumn. Red winged fruits hang in clusters in summer.
Location and soil
Partial shade, in fresh, lime-free and humus-rich soil. It grows best in a cool, sheltered position and does not like paved surfaces around its roots. Very hardy.
Pruning and care
Grows fairly quickly when young, then slows down. Keep the soil moist during the first summers and mulch. Prune only to remove dead or crossing branches, between December and February or in June. The multi-stemmed form is best left to develop naturally.
Use in the garden
A centrepiece for medium to large gardens and parks, as a specimen or in a border of calm plants such as hostas, ferns and ornamental grasses. Also attractive in green strips, where the striped bark stands out in winter.
Characteristics
Botanical
| Family | Sapindaceae |
| Genus | Acer |
| Species | davidii |
| Cultivar | 'Mindavi' |
| Trade name | Viper® |
Flowering
| Flowering period | april |
| Colour (flower) | yellow |
Foliage
| Evergreen | no |
| Colour (foliage) | green |
| Autumn colour | yellow, orange, red |
Growth habit
| Height | 500 cm, 1000 cm |
Location
| Winter hardiness | -25 °C |
| Soil type | acid |
| Location | sun, half shade |
| Soil moisture | normal |
Use
| Type (use) | shrub, tree/standard, solitary |