I am very surprised, vane, that none of the 125 maples germinated true to type, which characteristics would place it under the name 'specie'. A cultiva is either a sport or a hybrid created by nature or man and quite often is sterile (not producing seeds) or producing seeds which never germinate. If they do make seeds then the seedlings will show much variation, though some may become true to type. I have a specie Palmatum Athropurpurum whose seedlings are true to type nearly 100%. AS far as I know Bloodgroup is not a specie, so it must be a sport or hybrid. That explains why the it is sold as a stem-grafted plant and not on its own roots.I mentioned earlier there are 600 varieties of J. Maples, majority of which are cultivars. When we say 'red' J. Maple, often the color is not a true red but a purplish red or dark scarlet especially if it is the specie Atropurpurum. One example of a truely red leaf J. Maple is the cutivar called chishio, its leaves remaining red in summer and its red tone deepens in autumn. The family name of all maples in the world is Aceraceae, then its genus, Acer or Diteronia; under Acer then you have the Section and Series, like the palmatum. Under the series we come to the specie, under which we then have the sub-specie. Most of the Japanese maples we come across belong to the largest group Series Pamata. In this Series the 2 largest and common species are A. japonica and A. palmatum. Also we are familiar with the A. palmatum dissectum where the leaf is fernlike and either appearing in green or red (A. palmatum dissectum atropurpurum). This red specie has given rise to most red dissectum in the nursery like Crimson Queen, Ever Red,Inaba Shidare and a host of lesser known red dissectum. The third well known species of palmata is the 'Full Moon' Maple and its fall color is bright red or translucent scarlet red. It has large green to bluish green leaves in summer, 7 and 9 lobes per leaf and belongs to A.japonicum under the specie aconitifolium. New seedlings give much interest and may become new hybrids but have no registered names yet. One example is red leafed palmatum. It basic leaf color is a strong maroon or black red and has a varigation of crimson, which sometimes appear as specks or in large patches covering even a entire half lobe. I have only seen pictures of it and not yet in the nursery. Outside of Japan we have other Genus maples native to the country, like in China where the leaf form is nowhere near the normal maple shape and the fall coloration is less marked. In the NW continent we have our own vine maple, which comes into the Series Palmata Vine Maple and its specie group is A. circinatum. England can only claim one native maple i.e. the Hedge Maple, which grows into a bushy tree maybe 12 feet high or if trimmed in a row makes a good dense hedge. 'Amur Maple' which hails from Europe has green leaves looking more like a beech than a maple, but its autumn red color is most outstanding. The Acers have become so numerous and complex that taxonomists in the world are splitting hairs in their claim of classification. The interrelationship of acers within the series become important when you move into propagation by grafting. Varieties within the same specie are most compatible when it comes to cambium union and the crown becomes impossible to differentiate as the plant matures. However we have known of other cases of successful grafts of acers outside its own section, but this is rare. The best way to decide if a particular plant is a maple is to look at the fruit, which must be twin blade with a seed in each blade, called 'samara'. When it is fully ripened, the blade falls n spins like a helicopter blade, much to the delight of children in my grandson's pre-school class during his show n tell period. I love J. maples and often visit my friend's farm of 2 acres, planted mostly with J. maples. When planted in masses its autumn cloration is spectacular and out of this world. I hope this note offers some insight into the wonders and complexity of the term Japanese maples.

I just came across a group of three Acer Griseum in a shopping centre planting. There were seeds germinating all over the floor. have potted up around 50. They had really varied bark. Beautiful things. This cold winter here has been a huge help!

Red maples are so named because of their flower color, not because of fall foliage :-) Coloring can be quite variable, depending on cultivar, climate and growing conditions and seedlings will not necessarily duplicate the same features as their parent. Dirr, in his Manual of Woody Landscape Plants says this: "Red Maple does not always have brilliant red fall color and unscrupulous plantsmen who offer seedling trees and guarantee red fall color are frauding the public." He goes on to say "in the Southeast, particularly the Piedmont and Coastal Plain, Red Maple is abudant but bright red fall coloring plants are seldom evident."

Mine have been in the ground for 2 years now. In the 2 falls I've had them, the fall color was more of a maroon color instead of bright red. However I don't expect true fall colors on a tree in the first 2 years, so I'm withholding my judgement. I have noticed they begin to turn early since I've had them...they are both already showing tinges of maroon and red in mid August. It has been a very wet and mild summer here in central IN (except for the past week). I will say I am very happy with the trees though. In my area, where so many red maples suffer from yellowing and chlorosis late in the summer, they have consistently had a good, clean, medium green foliage all summer long. They have put on about 8" of new growth each of their 2 summers, with a nice increase in trunk caliper. Next summer, in their 3rd year, I'm expecting a bigger jump in growth rate.