No weeping laceleaf maples are in leaf throughout the year. All forms of Japanese maple are deciduous. In Los Angeles you may have to deal with mineral salts in the irrigation water, in addition to the desert atmosphere and intensity of sunshine.

Find out which ones are likely to be available to you and then look up their color retention behavior. Some common ones such as 'Crimson Queen' are known for resisting fading out much better than older forms. But perhaps none will stay a good purple all season under your conditions.

John, it would be more to the point if you were to investigate whether such tree can be bought in your local area. Allowing for limited distance to travel to acquire such 'tree' might convince you to think of something else to decorate the pot.
I stress the use of locally grown specimens because to go beyond the zone you plan to put such a tree is risking how long the tree can survive given your local conditions.

Many mail-order houses are quick to suggest their stock can be shipped to southern California. Before you go this route try to get some kind of warrantee if it doesn't survive a year--and get it in writing.

Wouldn't you rather obtain something that can survive in your local conditions much better than a deciduous tree that cant possibly survive growing such limited height as 3- 5 feet.

We hear wonderful stories about Crepe Myrtles and how their colorful flowering does for a landscape.
Much to the chagrin of northerners, they cant be bought here....for a very good reason, they wouldn't survive.
Nurseries will not stock something they know cant survive local conditions and while we admire southern flowering plants, they belong at home.....not removed from their natural home.

You might inquire about acquiring seeds for a plant such as small versions of large trees.
In such cramped quarters like a pot, plants will be limited in growth by the amount of soil they are given and their roots taking in what nutrition such volume of soil allows them. In other words, sometimes a small tree can be grown in a container of smaller proportions and be limited in growth.

This site has particular regional forums. You might look in the "California" forum and speak to possibly one of your neighbors.

Jeannie, you might be surprised to know that there are a number of excellent specialty Japanese maple nurseries located in California and that there are many regular posters to this forum living in that area that grow them. Japanese maples grow well in much of California and they are widely available at many better retail nurseries and garden centers.

As to them being a "deciduous tree that cant possibly survive growing such limited height as 3- 5 feet", that's nonsense and simply indicates your lack of knowledge about these plants. There are many dwarf forms and those dissectums with very low grafts that will simply never grow much taller than what the OP wants. And have you never heard of bonsai? Container culture as a whole has dwarfing ability on most plants so generally growth is much slower and many cultivars of Japanese maples make ideal long-term container plants.

John, as you probably realize, JM's are rather common in SoCal but do indeed fair better when they are within the milder coastal area. A shaded position for any variety is preferred. And bboy is correct about the quality of the irrigation water - you will need to make allowances for this and hopefully a better local nursery will give you some tips. If you can do the drive, Rogers Gardens in Newport is having a Japanese Maple seminar on March 28th. If you've not visited before, Rogers Gardens is one of the pre-eminent retail garden centers in the country and they will have a great selection of J. maples for you to chose from as well as very helpful advice on growing them in your area.

There are number of red laceleafs - some of the most common cultivars with low grafts - that would work for you height-wise. But many will get much wider than tall, so spread should be a consideration in the choice as well.

Here is a link that might be useful: Rogers Gardens spring seminar list

Typo. Did not mean to say year round. They look equally beautiful when bare. Yes we do have them in LA but not always looking good because of poor irrigation and direct relentless sunglight. This is a bright dappled shade and I think perfect

How does one get around the water problem? Hand watering with specail water?

Thanks for all the suggestions and yes I know Rogers Nursery. Great place.

John

You can acidify the water with a small amount of regular vinegar or even lemon juice. Get a cheap garden pH test kit to calculate how much you'll need to add (looking for a pH of ~6.0-6.5). Or use distilled/bottled water. And yes, it's probably going to have to be by hand, but that's a lot easier with a containerized maple than one in the ground :-)

If you can, do the Rogers Garden seminar and ask them what they'd recommend to get around the water alkalinity issue.

The smallest growing red weeping japanese maple is Red Filigree lace. Others to consider for pot culture would be: Mikawa Yatsubusa, Murasaki Kiyohime and Beni Ubi Gohan.
David