When to plant and prune Japanese Maple
Japanese Maple flowers from mid April to early May and the dates below cover planting, flowering and the pruning window.
Planting, flowering and pruning by region
Japanese Maple is grown to the calendar rather than to the frost, so the same dates apply across the whole UK and every region below reads the same. Where a plant’s timings do follow the frost, Plot shifts them from the Midlands and Lowland Wales baseline using Met Office average frost dates.
| Where you are | Plant | In flower | Prune |
|---|---|---|---|
| South West Coast and Cornwall | early October to late December | mid April to early May | early July to late December |
| South Coast and Channel | early October to late December | mid April to early May | early July to late December |
| Greater London (Urban Heat Island) | early October to late December | mid April to early May | early July to late December |
| South East and Home Counties | early October to late December | mid April to early May | early July to late December |
| East Anglia | early October to late December | mid April to early May | early July to late December |
| Midlands and Lowland Wales | early October to late December | mid April to early May | early July to late December |
| Wales and West Coast | early October to late December | mid April to early May | early July to late December |
| Northern England | early October to late December | mid April to early May | early July to late December |
| Scotland Lowlands and Central Belt | early October to late December | mid April to early May | early July to late December |
| Scotland Highlands and Islands | early October to late December | mid April to early May | early July to late December |
| Northern Ireland | early October to late December | mid April to early May | early July to late December |
| Channel Islands and Isle of Man | early October to late December | mid April to early May | early July to late December |
Growing notes
Shelter from strong wind and hot afternoon sun to prevent leaf scorch, especially fine-cut (dissectum) cultivars. Fine long-term in a large pot, but will eventually outgrow small balcony containers and needs root-pruning every 2-3 years if kept container-bound.
At a glance
- Spacing
- 300 cm between plants
- Eventual height
- 400 cm
- Eventual spread
- 400 cm
- Hardiness
- H5
- Sun
- Partial
- Frost tender
- No
- Grows in a container
- Yes, 40 litres or more
- Balcony rating
- 2 out of 5
Feeding
Trees in the ground rarely need feeding; long-term container specimens benefit from a general granular feed in late spring.
Pruning: what to avoid
Only prune between July and January. Pruning in spring or early summer causes the tree to 'bleed' sap heavily from the cuts, weakening it — this is the classic Japanese maple pruning mistake.
Pruning group
Minimal pruning; remove dieback/crossing shoots any time July-January
Winter protection
Protect young unfurling leaves from late spring frost with fleece; wrap containers in winter as pot-grown roots are more exposed to cold than those in the ground.
What usually goes wrong
- leaf scorch in wind/sun
- late frost damage to young leaves
- verticillium wilt
Related guides
Timings cross-checked against RHS guidance for japanese maple.