Vine Maple Tree

If you've seen a lovely Vine Maple (Acer circinatum) lyrically draped across the low ground in the wild, you've only seen a single aspect of these unusual native plants. In full sun, they grow upright as large, shrubby ornamental trees.

They look beautiful all year-long, with gorgeous bark, pretty spring blooms, outstanding leaves and great fall color. The delicate reddish-purple flowers are a clarion call to local butterflies and honey bees.

It's a great feeling to include beloved natives in your landscape design. People are turning to Vine Maple as a native alternative to Japanese Maples. The leaves are just as showy!

Broadly rounded, the finely-toothed leaves are textured, with either 7 or 9 short lobes at the end. These cute leaves will definitely catch your eye. They hang on long petioles and flutter in every breeze.

New spring leaves come out red in color, and mature into bright green on top, with a downy underside. Enjoy the months of welcome shade they provide all summer, as they'll soon develop their wonderful fall color.

Once the nights start getting colder, the seasonal display starts. Those distinctive leaves turn a deep, glowing mix of harvest gold, blaze orange and brilliant red. They'll become an outstanding feature of your fall landscape.

You can use them in several ways to take advantage of their charm. As an understory plant in the shade of taller Maples, Western Hemlock or Douglas Fir trees, Vine Maple spreads out low and wide.

Give them room to develop into their graceful, vining form. Plant them away from paths, and use as a filler in wide, mulched "forest" plantings.

With more sunlight, they develop into an erect tree. Allow multiple stems to grow from the base to become an established, very showy specimen with beautifully spreading limbs.

As Vine Maple gets older, the bark develops an attractive red tone. You'll love the twists and turns of the trunks.

These valuable native plants add a unique charm to your landscape. Vine Maple is not too large or too small. This medium-sized tree is an ideal choice for modern yards.

Order Vine Maple today and enjoy these rare and delightful native trees for a classic look of the Pacific Northwest! Don’t delay, or you might miss out.

How to Use Vine Maple Tree in the Landscape

These small trees bring an informal, architectural style to your landscape. Use them in a transition zone between a manicured formal planting and rough woods.

Add several in a grouping around a contemporary outdoor entertainment area. Add a fire pit, a hammock stand and several hammock chairs to relax in style. Leave room for a path between two of your trees.

Grow them along the edge of a pond or stream bank and you'll enjoy their beauty both live and reflected in the water. This can become a main garden feature...or place it away from your home as a welcome destination spot.

Plant one 20 feet away from the corner of your house. The more sun it receives, the brighter the fall foliage display will be.

Include these terrific vining plants to the brush in a woodland planting with dappled shade. You'll get a chance to recreate the wilderness as part of your own personal sanctuary.

For a wonderful privacy screen in a very small space, grow several Vine Maples in an espalier planting. You'll create a flat "living wall" that can decorate the perimeter of your seating area or outdoor dining room.

Read our blog for more information on how to set up the support system. Espalier is a very effective, ancient pruning technique that would showcase these interesting native trees perfectly.

#ProPlantTips for Care

Vine Maple can be planted in either full sun or partial shade. It must have at least four hours of direct sunlight a day. Just know...the more sun, the more color in fall!

This easy-care selection of Red Maple prefers a deep, rich, moist soil. Ideally, the soil should be well-drained and slightly acidic.

If your preferred planting spot holds water for a long time after a rainfall, plant in a raised bed. You can also plant in a mounded heap of additional soil 18 inches tall by 3 feet wide.

Mulch is important for good results for these moisture-loving trees. Apply a three-inch layer of mulch and spread it three feet outside the canopy. Lastly, pull the mulch away from the tree trunk by several inches.

Be sure to provide a medium amount of water on a regular basis, especially if you don’t receive enough rainfall. Protect your investment in dry times with supplemental water.

Prune Vine Maple in late winter, before it leaves out in spring. You'll shape your plant to suit the planting site. Cut back crossing or damaged branches to an outward-facing bud at a 45-degree angle.

You'll be proud of your choice to add native Vine Maples to your landscape. Enjoy their amazing form, cunning spring flowers and the long-lasting, fiery shades of its fall color.

Order your Vine Maple tree today!