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It puts on a spring show and an encore in February 🎭
Family: Sapindaceae · Pot diameter: 10.5 cm · Height: 20–25 cm
Acer palmatum ‘Phoenix’ brings one of the most finely drawn colour displays of spring: pink leaves with yellow-green veins, passing through bright yellow before maturing to glossy green. In autumn the same crown blends orange, red and yellow, creating a second peak with an entirely different intensity. Its presence remains refined at close range and clear from a distance, allowing it to act as a complete ornamental feature that renews the composition with every seasonal transition. It is a cultivar with a distinct identity, capable of turning even a restrained corner into a scene of colour, movement and collectable character.
Its upright, broad and naturally branched form creates a clear presence at an entrance, in a sheltered courtyard or small garden. The multicoloured leaves reward close viewing, while from farther away the crown reads as a luminous seasonal mass with elegant architecture.
Three substantial qualities explain why ‘Phoenix’ stands out both in close detail and in its overall presence.
Pink leaves with yellow-green veins pass through yellow to glossy green, before turning orange, red and yellow in autumn.
Clear veins and deeply cut leaves create graphic detail within the luminous crown.
The upright broad silhouette has enough structure to act as a central feature without artificial shaping.
Why you will love it: A living palette that changes character three times through the year without losing its refined line.
Use it as a focal point near an entrance, sheltered seating area or in the middle layer of a cool mixed planting. At maturity, it develops an upright broad crown with elegant branching and benefits from a calm background and sufficient open space to retain its natural architecture.
For several plants retaining a free natural crown, allow centre-to-centre spacing close to the verified mature spread of 2.5–4 m. In a pot choose a stable base, free drainage and a position where the roots are protected from overheating.
The pink, yellow-green and golden-orange palette of ‘Phoenix’ becomes clearer beside purple flower spikes, silver-purple ferns and a glossy evergreen base. All three choices suit bright partial shade and organic soil with even moisture and good drainage, creating clean layers around the Acer’s natural form.
Bright partial shade or morning sun, shaded from fierce midday sun and sheltered from drying wind.
Water thoroughly when the upper layer begins to dry, maintaining even moisture without waterlogging; check pots more frequently in hot weather.
Deciduous and hardy in winter cold; fresh growth benefits from shelter against late frost, hot dry air and extreme summer exposure.
An ornamental plant, not food. It is not intended for consumption; place it away from children or animals that tend to chew plant material.
Bright partial shade or morning sun, shaded from fierce midday sun and sheltered from drying wind.
Plant in fertile, organic, acid to neutral soil that retains moisture yet drains freely. Keep the root collar level with the surrounding soil and allow the natural crown the space indicated by its mature habit.
Use a roomy, stable outdoor pot with unobstructed drainage holes and a structured growing medium that resists compaction. It can grow for years in a large outdoor pot with free drainage and even moisture. As it matures towards 4–5 m × 2.5–4 m, check available root space periodically and move to a larger pot when required.
Water thoroughly when the upper layer begins to dry, maintaining even moisture without waterlogging; check pots more frequently in hot weather. An organic mulch helps buffer sudden changes in moisture and temperature.
A light application of balanced fertiliser in early spring is usually sufficient. Avoid excessive nitrogen and late feeding, which encourage soft new growth.
Pruning is rarely necessary. Remove only dead, damaged or awkwardly crossing branches after leaf fall and before midwinter. A bare crown in winter is entirely normal.
After planting, new growth may be restrained while the root system settles. Even moisture and a sheltered microclimate matter more than rapid extension.
As the main shoots branch, the plant gradually develops an upright broad crown with elegant branching. Its natural line is most attractive when it is not clipped into a rigid shape.
With maturity it repeats its distinctive colour cycle each year: pink and yellow-green spring, glossy green summer and three-tone autumn colour, followed by natural leaf fall.
Indicative natural silhouette; verified mature dimensions 4–5 m high × 2.5–4 m wide.
The crown is naturally bare in winter. Colour intensity and timing vary with light, temperature and microclimate.
What to expect after planting: In a suitable position in open ground, the mature form reaches approximately 4–5 m in height and 2.5–4 m in spread over 10–20 years. Growth usually remains more restrained in a pot.
‘Phoenix’ is associated with Dutch nurseryman Dick van der Maat and his specialist nursery in Boskoop. He discovered the cultivar and introduced it into cultivation.
Its distinctive spring foliage emerges pink with yellow-green veins, gradually turning yellow and then green.
In the horticultural classification of Japanese maples, this cultivar belongs to the Palmatum Group: its leaves usually have five to seven lobes, cut beyond halfway into the blade without the fine secondary division of the Dissectum Group.
Six practical answers covering light, seasonal colour, pots, mature size, pruning and winter leaf fall.
Bright partial shade or morning sun, shaded from fierce midday sun and sheltered from drying wind. A sheltered microclimate matters just as much as the number of hours of light.
Pink and yellow-green spring growth naturally changes to glossy green, with intensity varying according to weather and growth stage.
It can grow for years in a large outdoor pot with free drainage and even moisture. As it matures towards 4–5 m × 2.5–4 m, check available root space periodically and move to a larger pot when required.
In a suitable position in open ground it reaches approximately 4–5 m in height and 2.5–4 m in spread over 10–20 years. Microclimate and available root space influence the rate.
Usually not; its natural architecture is central to its beauty. If cleaning is needed, work after leaf fall and before midwinter, removing only what is necessary.
Yes. It is deciduous and sheds its leaves in autumn after completing its colour cycle. Fresh growth returns in spring.
