Hana matoi Japanese maple is a stunning variegated acer palmatum dissectum. It has gorgeous multi-colored foliage that changes by season and sun exposure. This weeping maple is a show stopper in smaller gardens because of its constantly shifting color and lacy texture.

Cultivar Origin

Yutaka Tanaka of Tsukasa Nursery in Japan introduced acer palmatum Hana matoi. Since then, collectors around the world have prized this tree for its brilliant show of color throughout the season. The name translates as ‘flower mark’.

Hana Matoi Japanese Maple Leaves

Like most variegated maples, Hana matoi will color differently depending upon the type and amount of sun exposure. Fortunately, this tree can handle direct sun as well as full shade.

Sun vs Shade

If you plant Hana matoi in full sun, the leaves will burst with vibrant crimson tones and flashes of hot pink. The inner, more shaded leaves will be olive with pale pink variegation. If you have this tree in full sun, pinks and reds will fade to greens more quickly.

However, if you plant Hana matoi in full shade, you’ll be rewarded with swirls of pale pinks and whites over a flush of deep green. Additionally, the pink tones last a bit longer in the shade.

Spring Color of Hana Matoi Japanese Maple

Saturated hues of fuchsia, pale pink and green unfurl as the tree begins to leaf out in the spring. Variegation seems to hold well throughout the season, and the tree doesn’t revert like some other cultivars.

Fall Color of Hana Matoi Japanese Maple

In the fall, Hana matoi is a vibrant flaming red with pink undertones due to the variegation.

Bark Coloration

New growth is often bright pink, transitioning to deep red. Then, as summer approaches, red bark becomes more brown. Older wood has a yellow-green cast. Depending upon the rootstock, the trunk can may be bright green, adding more interest to the tree.

Size, Habit, Hardiness

Acer palmatum Hana matoi is a somewhat slow growing Japanese maple. It will reach about 3 feet wide in 10 years. It produces a low mounding, cascading umbrella. So, if you want a taller version, you’ll need to find one that’s grafted on a tall standard rootstock.

Most variegated maples require some shelter from the sun, and tend to be less hardy. However, Hana matoi is stronger, and will do well in ZONES 5-9.

Other Variegated Japanese Maples

If you love acer palmatum Hana matoi, check out these other variegated dissectum maples. If we’re sold out, place an order for next year and we’ll get the size you want.

• Beni Shidare Tri-color
• Goshiki Shidare
• Toyama nishiki

Buy Hana Matoi

Inventory moves quickly in the spring. So, if we are sold out of this tree, or you’d like to purchase a larger specimen than what we have listed, just send us an email. We frequently have, or can get, trees that aren’t listed in our website store. View our inventory here.

Geisha Gone Wild Japanese maple is a gorgeous pink and green variegated tree. It’s a showstopper in the spring with its brilliant magenta and bright pink leaves. As summer approaches, the colors fade to soft pink and pale greens with hints of jade, cream, gray and purple. Bright yellow green bark adds even more eye-popping interest to this already stunning maple.

Geisha Gone Wild Japanese Maple Leaves

The Geisha Gone Wild Japanese maple is a seedling from ‘Geisha’ which was selected and named by Buchholz Nursery. The leaves are similar, but the plant is more vigorous. Instead of spotted variegation, it will have pink and cream margins like ‘Shirazz’. The leaves of the original Geisha cultivar are more bubble gum pink rather than the deep raspberry of Geisha Gone Wild.

Leaves growing on old branches of Acer Palmatum Geisha Gone Wild are smaller, more symmetrical and often colored pink with faint flecks of green. New growth foliage tends to be large and slightly deformed—but in a beautiful way. New leaves often have a long, sickle-shaped central lobe with a purple, gray or maroon coloration. Fall color is purple with orange tones.

This trait of larger leaves with less characteristic coloration is not unique to the Geisha cultivars. Another favorite tree of mine is the Ukigumo Japanese maple, also called floating clouds. It displays larger, less colorful leaves on first year branches and smaller white dappled leaves on older growth.

Size, Habit and Hardiness

The Geisha Gone Wild Japanese maple is a medium-sized tree, reaching about 6-7 feet tall and perhaps 4 feet wide in ten years. It tends to be slightly bushy with a few long lower branches and several leaders that eventually form a multi trunk canopy.

Geisha Gone Wild is a fairly hardy tree that’s able to withstand temperatures down to about -10º F, or USDA Plant Hardiness Zone 5a (although we’ve seen this cultivar thrive at lower temperatures than that.

Other Pink Japanese Maples

Looking for more pink Japanese maples? Acer Palmatum Shirazz is nearly identical to Geisha Gone Wild in every way. Another fantastic pink variety is Correlinium, who’s brilliant fuschia and salmon pink leaves will electrify your garden.

Acer Palmatum Ukigumo, also called Floating Clouds Japanese maple, is a striking specimen to behold in a garden. The name, which fittingly translates to “floating clouds,” is reminiscent of delicate misty clouds clinging to forested mountain tops.

Ukigumo has small leaves mixed with light and dark green with a fine mist of white blown over them. The clustering leaves flow like drifting clouds around green-gray bark that peeks through the “mist” of branches like distant trees on mountains.

Acer Palmatum Ukigumo Leaves

I find it very easy to get lost in poetics with Ukigumo. The tree is quite unusual. In the first year, leaves tend to be larger, and less white. Each year of age brings whiter, and daintier leaves with some puckering and curling. Some growers will find pale tones of pink, and others crisp white, sometimes there’s a hint of soft yellow among the maple’s leaves.

Ukigumo Japanese Maple Growth Habit

The Ukigumo Japanese maple will grow to about 10–12 feet at maturity, adding about 6 inches each year. It tends to grow vertically and widens at the top. Ukigumo won’t develop a broad spreading canopy, instead, it seems to send out shoots, and then fills in the branches as it ages.

While most Acer Palmatums prefer shade, this is one that absolutely must have it to perform. Many growers complain about its lack of white when planting the tree in full sun. I find the older my Ukigumo Japanese maple gets, the whiter the leaves become. So be patient with this tree, and you will be rewarded.

Buy Floating Clouds Japanese Maple

Want to buy this eye-catching tree? It’s available in our online store here. If we are sold out, or you’d like a larger specimen, please contact us. We often have special trees in reserve and can always order exactly what you’re looking for!