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| | Metro Maples - Shantung Maples and
Fire Dragon®
Shantung -
updated 3/29/12
Open Every Saturday 8am-2pm and Monday thru Friday
by appointment 8am-2pm.
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The first
cultivar of a Shantung
maple is called Fire Dragon® Maple and
was discovered and introduced by Metro Maples.
A medium-sized shade tree that only grows to 25-35 feet after many years
and can take the hot Texas sun. Regular Shantungs are
also great maples that are very similar and explained below.
Fire Dragon® is the most consistent
and reddest Shantung maple I have ever seen, and was
selected from among the twenty-one thousand seedlings I have grown. It
also has a near perfect leaf shape that makes a more elegant and
cleaner looking tree.
Shantung maples are in high demand and are gaining
popularity in 49 states. This tree will prove to be "tougher and just as beautiful as
any maple growing back east". Hardy and heat tolerant, it
will grow
just about anywhere in acidic or alkaline soils.
In 2008 in Tokyo I met a Chinese botanist, professor and author and had
him pronounce Shantung. He pronounced it Shan-doon. The
second syllable rhymes with moon and is slightly higher in pitch. |
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This is a
close-up of a Fire Dragon® leaf
in the fall. I have it patented (PP #17367) because of its superior fall
color and great leaf shape. It's full name is: Acer
truncatum 'Fire Dragon®'.
METRO MAPLES INTRODUCTION - FIRE DRAGON®
MAPLE, PP #17367.
TWO HUGE FACTS: (1) 3 days of
freeze, each down to 24 degrees and not above freezing in NW Arkansas, in mid-April, did
ZERO
damage to 'Fire Dragon'® but defoliated
all the oaks and other maples. This event killed 3 years of growth
all the way to North Carolina. (2) 2011 was the hottest, driest,
windiest, worst Texas summer ever and 9 for 9 'Fire Dragons'® survived
and colored up normally in the fall without irrigation in my dry sandy soil.
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Contrasting Shantung maples in fall
color:
Fire Dragon®
Shantung, foreground, and a regular Shantung,
background.
Shantung are hardy to zone 4, and
have not been damaged by ice or from temperatures 25 degrees below zero!
Shantungs have a fibrous root system which is not overly aggressive, and
grows easily even in alkaline clay soils.
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Close-up
of spring color on Fire Dragon® Maple. The new growth
changes to a bright red in summer.
Most Shantung have a reddish-purple spring color and are sometimes
referred to as 'Purple Blow' maple. Fire Dragon® maple has five very uniform
toothed-lobes and the look is more elegant than regular Shantungs.
Planting tip: Best times to plant - mid-September thru early March..
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Hundreds
of young Fire Dragon® grafts with
late spring color in 2005 turning from burnt orange to a orange-pink.
Shantung maples grow 2 to 5 feet per year.
This tree has a superior root system with no faults except it cannot
tolerate water-logged soils.
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And here
is the early summer rose-red color on Fire Dragon® maple.
The leaf is so distinctive, even when solid green, that I am always able
to pick out this tree from regular Shantung maples.
The new growth colors are from pigments that might help protect the new leaves
from ultra-violet rays or from insects, until the leaf has a chance to photosynthesize
or produce tannins to ward-off insects. Spring colors are awesome
in cool weather.
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Summer
growth on Fire Dragon® maple.
It can also be a brighter red or a burnt orange.
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Fall color of 'Fire
Dragon'® Shantung maple (left), compared to
'Bloodgood'
Japanese Maple in 2003. First grafts of Fire
Dragon® were done in 2002, but when I saw this color I
decided to patent this tree. Perhaps the reddest fall color of any
maple in the world.
The red color at left is 1 of 4
different red fall colors you may get.
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September thru November in 2007 was the second hottest fall ever recorded in
the D/FW area, yet Fire Dragon® maples colored-up like this
on December 2.
Reports have come in saying that Fire Dragon® turns red from Oregon, New York, Virginia,
to Arkansas and Oklahoma, and even
all the way down to Houston.
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Finding a
consistent red for hot, sunny climates has never been achieved until
now. Here is 'Fire Dragon'® Shantung in the fall of 2007 with Ginkgo
'Autumn Gold'.
I call this color red-red and it makes all
other maples look purple-red or orange-red. Most shade
trees that turn red in the northern parts of the USA never
produce red in Texas. Do not confuse a Shantung with Sugar maple, Red, Silver or any other maple you have heard
about. This maple is totally different and you'll be amazed at
its beauty and toughness and other great qualities.
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In 2009 I saw a new fall color for 'Fire
Dragon®'. After 27 inches of
rain in just the last 10 weeks, and endless clouds, and the first actual
fall feeling temperatures in many years, some turned a brilliant orange,
before turning
red!
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Here is
the top on a 65-gallon 'Fire Dragon'® maple
with red color in 30mph winds.
There are at least 3 different red anthocyanin compounds
that can form in the fall based mostly on temperatures and length of
chilling, and soil pH does not seem to affect the color. I have
seen bright cardinal red, currant red with Chinese yellow margins, and
reddish-orange, but never yellow.
Another cool thing about this tree is that fall colors
are consistent on every branch and leaf, and color
is not much affected by clouds or shade or high/low temperatures or soil
pH. I get this same color even underneath the native post
oaks.
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The attractive branching of a Shantung maple. Three year old wood is very hard. One of
the least damaged trees from ice storms according to Kansas
State and Oklahoma State University studies.
Shantung maples grow in full sun in all soils except very water-logged
soils. They can take the Texas heat or Minnesota cold, and are very drought tolerant.
They also adapt well to shade and can survive there for many years until
they reach the sunlight.
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Close-up
of Shantung bark at the root flare on a 12 year old tree grown with very
little irrigation or fertilizers.
Tip: Although the wood is very hard the beautiful
bark is soft and can be scratched or bruised..
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A dark, glossy-green summer color. To me when they shine in the sun
they look like
green diamonds. Shantung maples have a very efficient root system that
is not aggressive, a waxy and thick leaf, and low transpiration rates to
help them through hot summers.
Shantung maples might grow to 35 feet tall and wide with age in the
lower midwest. They grow faster and get a little bigger in warm
climates than those grown farther north.
They are hardy
to at least 25 degrees below zero.
Shantungs were one of the
very few trees that had no damage
from the huge late freeze in April
2007 across the midwest to North Carolina that destoyed 2 to 3 years
worth of tree crops.
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Large
Shantungs are not messy and will drop all leaves and cover the
ground with color. They are easy clean-up compared to other trees
and decompose quickly. Here are regular and Fire Dragon®
leaves after leaf drop.
Acer truncatum has been used as a street tree in Shanghai for
many years, tolerating the pollution, limited root space, and compacted
soils. In the difficult DF/W climate you should give your Shantung
plenty of room for the roots to grow to give it the best chance of
survival long-term.
In its native habitat, Shantung maples are
expected to live 250 years or more.
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'Fire
Dragon'® Shantung maple in fall 2006 on the right with
a regular Shantung, left.
Named after the revered symbol of its home country, China, the Dragon is
considered a benevolent creature that brings rain!
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Here is a
picture of an Acer truncatum, Shantung Maple that I photographed at the Morris
Arboretum, PA. It is a beautiful tree, grown with its natural low trunk shape. It
was at the Arboretum at least by 1916 but probably there in 1906, making
it 100 years old when I took this picture.
Somewhere in its history a low branch was removed from the right-hand
side to allow clear passage on the road. Pictures taken from the left
side did not reveal branching, only foliage.
The tree was 35 foot tall and 35 foot wide. Main branching occurred at 2
feet. Trunk diameter is about 2 1/2 feet. No surface roots or decay
was observed.
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In 2011 after the 4th International Maple Symposium in Belgium I
traveled to Kew Gardens in London and photographed this Acer truncatum.
Most likely this is the tree in Maples of the World that stated
was the first A. truncatum
out of China and went to Kew in1871, making this tree 140 years old.
The top of the first branch crotch is 6 foot off the ground!
Estimated height and width is 38 x 50 feet. The trunk at ground
level was 3 feet thick. |
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Here is a
variegated Acer truncatum that I found. I have many other test plants and hope to
introduce more cultivars as soon as possible. Some of the most
likely prospects are pictured in 'More Maples'.
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The early
spring blooms are bright and very nice on Shantung maples and
this picture does not do it justice. Most
observed flowers are male flowers so seedlings have not been a big weed problem.
When you compare a Shantung maple to other shade trees it will always
come out on top. It takes the heat, cold, wind, ice, bad soils, doesn't
get too big, doesn't have surface roots, is long-lived, nice blooms,
nice looking bark, nice leaf, doesn't produce many seeds, and has brilliant fall
colors.
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A
close-up of a Shantung maple's half-opened flowers.
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A regular
seedling grown Shantung maple in fall color. This beautiful tree has
been grown with its natural shape and is in my display garden. The shape
of a Shantung maple can be affected by its location but will eventually
become rounded when given the room to spread.
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Here is a
close-up of a regular seedling-grown Shantung maple. It is
as good a yellow as it gets. Some years a mix of oranges and reds combine
with the yellow.
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Shantung
in glorious fall color at the entrance to Metro Maples. We have the largest Shantung maples in the DF/W area
to look at.
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Metro
Maples - Shantung Maple Cultivars:
Fire Dragon® Shantung maple (top left). Sales started in
fall 2006.
Golden Dragon (top right). First sales in fall 2009.
Skinny Dragon (bottom right). First sales in fall 2009.
Witch's Dragon (bottom left). Not available.
Baby Dragon (center). Being propagated but first sales date
unknown.
This is the picture used in The Maple Society Article, Summer 2006, see
below.
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2010 was very dry and windy,
then I had several record highs and 40+mph
south winds in mid-November just as the Shantung began to color. These 2 Fire Dragons®
managed to produce very nice color on November 22.
They were red-red in Oklahoma, Arkansas, and
in Oregon where the weather was cooler, but generally orange-red this year in Texas. |
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WARNING:
There are several garden centers and especially home improvement garden
centers that are selling inferior maples that are labeled as Shantung
maples. The two top left leaves are Shantung maples. The top right is a
Norway maple that had a Shantung tag. The lower left leaf is probably a
sugar maple that had a Shantung tag. Neither the Norway or Sugar maple
are good trees for alkaline soils and will grow for only a short while
and will not produce much fall color. Both the Norway and Sugar maple
have smooth gray bark, whereas even a small Shantung will show some
fissured bark and should be brown. If you purchased one of these
mislabeled trees I recommend you return it immediately.
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Here I
am, Keith Johansson, 'King of the Shantung'. (Current number of
Shantung I have personally grown over 17 years: 19,950)
This Shantung (ten years old as shown) was grown from seed in 1995 and planted in the year 2000
as a test. It proved to be drought tolerant through that record-breaking
hot and dry summer without irrigation (110 consecutive days without
rain), even though it was planted in the dryest possible place, the top of a pure sugar-sand hill.
Texas A&M has designated the Shantung maple a Texas Superstar®.
Kansas State University has performed trials and declared it one of the
best ornamental urban trees. The United States Department of Agriculture
is currently researching Shantung maples and my Fire Dragon®
Shantung to introduce tough, reliable, and beautiful trees that will not
out-grow small urban yards. Oklahoma and Missouri and others have given their
approval. Nobody has ever rejected this species as
unsuitable. The future looks very bright for Shantung
maples.
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Growing the Shantung Maple in Texas Conditions
written by Keith Johansson for The Maple Society newsletter,
published Summer, 2006.
Acer truncatum, Shantung maple, is thriving and gaining
popularity in difficult situations, like the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas
area. I began commercially growing fifty plus varieties of Japanese,
Shantung, and other maples in Fort Worth in 1994 under the name Metro
Maples, but now I love the Shantung maple because of its toughness, good
growth, and year-round beauty. Dr. John Pair, Director of Research,
Kansas State University, told me back then at an American Rhododendron
Society meeting that I should grow Shantung maples. He was one of the
most respected horticulturists in the country and did the initial
research on the tree in Wichita, Kansas from seed sent from the Morris
Arboretum. Not only does Wichita get hot but it also receives severe
cold snaps and strong winds. Many reports on the Internet claim the
Shantung maple is cold hardy to at least minus 25 degrees Fahrenheit. In
early December 2005 none were damaged by a sudden change from 90 degrees
to 14 degrees, while many Japanese maples were damaged or killed.
Initially, Shantung maples were hard to sell, as nobody knew what they
were. To me it seemed like a tough and beautiful tree but many thought
it might be another Silver maple that falls apart quickly in my area. By
year 2000 the Shantung maple and only two other trees were on the Texas
A&M University Superstar list and sales took-off.
I have grown approximately 9,000 Shantung maples, which seed comes from
China with a climate similar to New York. They are easy to grow from
seed. Shantung seedlings have grown fast in the first year but lately
they have grown slowly. I believe recent seed was harvested too soon.
The average person with an established tree will get growth of 2 to 5
feet per year even in the alkaline black gumbo soils of Dallas or the
white caliche soil of Fort Worth.
They are extremely drought tolerant as I have watched several survive
without water during my very long and hot summers in my sandy soil. In
my area they do require irrigation for the best growth. In summer 2000 I
went 110 days without any rain. Last year was the worst drought in fifty
years and I began watering my larger trees in summer, once a month to
maintain good health. I have grown thousands in full sun in black pots
on black plastic and can get new growth, which does not burn, from April
until the first of September. Shantung maples must like it hot and
somewhat dry as my extremely sandy soil never holds any water and
dries-out very quickly and because for me they reach over 20 feet in 7
years!
The only native maple in my area is Acer negundo but is not a tree for
most people. To the east and southeast where soils are acidic and
rainfall more abundant is Acer rubrum and Acer saccharum spp.
floridanum. To the south is Acer saccharum ssp. grandidentatum. In
western Oklahoma there is a sugar maple that has survived the
millenniums in a small canyon that is called the Caddo Maple. These all
grow for me but are slower and are not quite as showy or as tough as the
Shantung maple.
Shantung maple branches are flexible but old wood is very hard, much
like an oak. They can grow in windy sites. Kansas State University
proclaims them also as one of the best performing trees in ice storms.
The bark is two-tone brown, heavily fissured and very attractive. The
root system reminds me of a Japanese maple and is not overly aggressive
or shallow rooted. They tolerate pollution and fit the typical urban
landscape. About the only thing they cannot tolerate is poor drainage.
The bright lemon yellow flowers are produced in corymbs and this year
one large tree had flowers for 10 days before the leaves emerged.
Usually the flowers appear only a couple of days before the leaves. So
far it appears that most seeds do not develop for me but this means that
the tree is also not weedy.
Spring and summer new growth is usually a reddish-purple, but reds and
oranges are also seen. Fall color is a very bright yellow on about 90
percent of the trees. Sometimes reds and oranges are mixed with the
yellow. Sometimes they are all red or orange but return to yellow the
next year except for a new introduction I call Acer truncatum ‘Fire
Dragon’™. This tree has always had red fall color. The other reason
I choose to patent and propagate this variety is the beautiful leaf
shape (see photo). ‘Fire Dragon’™ has smaller leaves that are
seldom truncate and have backward angled basal lobes, lobes with
prominent teeth, and do not have the larger central lobe that is typical
of most Acer truncatum. The size and shape of the leaves give the tree a
cleaner look. Summer growth can be a burnt orange or pink or bright red
depending on the nutrients and the amount of water. Fall color is a
cardinal red (RHS 822/3), or when I don’t have cool temperatures it is
a currant red (RHS 821/3) with striking Chinese yellow (RHS 606/1)
around the margins. ‘Fire Dragon’™ also appears more heat tolerant
as it has a good ability to keep healthy new growth without wilting
under extreme heat conditions. What seems so amazing is that 4 years ago
I had just one small mother tree, and now I have over 3,000 of them!
One of my first Shantung seedlings I grew is now 12 years old and turned
out to be a nice little dwarf. It is always growing, trying to be big,
but is only 3 feet tall by 3 feet wide. Its leaves are only 1 inch wide
and new growth is a very attractive orange-red all summer. I call this
tree, ‘Baby Dragon’. I have no plans for production but I do have
some safely tucked away in another location in case a tornado takes mine
out.
I am also testing two yellow fall color cultivars. One has very narrow
and wavy leaf lobes giving the tree a delicate appearance. This one is
called ‘Skinny Dragon’. The second tree produces a high percentage
of beautifully shaped leaves with backward angled basal lobes and teeth
on all the lobes, which is known as ‘Golden Dragon’. All Shantung
maples have polymorphic leaves in varying percentages. These two are not
any better or worse for fall color its just the beautiful leaf that is
desired. There are also several other interesting leaves that I have
found including one that has deeply cut lobes with side lobes that curl
downward, (see photo). My seeds produce leaves that are similar in shape
to ‘Golden Dragon’ about 30 percent of the time. Hopefully, soon I
will find a dissected leaf. I have two new variegated seedlings under
review. One does not grow much at all and we’ll see what the other
does. Recently I grafted an Acer platanoides ‘Crimson King’ onto a
Shantung rootstock to see if this tree will then grow in our area.
I’ve thought about what I could hybridize a Shantung maple with but
there aren’t many improvements needed.
Texans love fall color. Unfortunately the native trees, mostly oaks,
hackberries, cottonwoods and pecans have poor fall color. They love
Japanese maples but they must be shaded and carefully watered. Shantung
maples act like a native and turn brilliant colors every fall. I am now
planting Shantung maples all over the farm so when I retire they’ll be
ready to put on a really big show that you’ll have to see to believe. |
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