A small vase-shaped tree, the wintertime red and pink bark on young branches are its best features. As with most reddish barked maples, in cool moist areas it suffers from blight if it is fertilized too late in spring. Moreover, as the tree ages, its coral bark appeal diminishes. Since it is so popular, grow it for its youthful appeal, but offer your clients a few improved versions of this long-time classic.

Knockout pink-orange new growth on lime-yellow older growth makes Carl Munn’s selection an enduring contribution to horticulture in a field already crowded with too many marginally different Japanese maple varieties. Moonrise is very hardy and a much tougher plant than ‘Aureum’, withstanding -26°F in Chicago and also adapted if in the shade in Dallas/Fort Worth. The amazing orange spring and summer foliage sets this selection apart as absolutely different. Order early to assure an annual supply.

Distinctively unusual, this katsura has golden summer foliage. The leaves emerge with a pink blush and unfurl to soft yellow. Throughout summer the more shaded leaves turn green, while those in sun remain yellow or turn almost white. Autumn yields the characteristic sweet fragrance and buttery golden color of the species. Best for a site with some late afternoon sun protection to avoid foliage burn, as is typical for many yellow-leaved plants.

Hearts of Gold' is the first of several new yellow-leafed redbuds. Its neon-yellow foliage is an immediate contrast in any landscape. Upright growth like the species; no leaf scorch in summer.

Introduced by Ray and Cindy Jackson. New growth has a light, Pumpkin-orange tint that distinguishes it from the uniformly green-ish-yellow color of 'Hearts of Gold'. In the heat of the Midwest and SE, it doesn't burn; that just makes it grow faster. We think you'll be amazed at its incandescent attractiveness, whether in a wholesale nursery or potted up for direct sale in a GC.

Unusual for its yellow to lime-green summer foliage, and tufts of soft, smoky gray flowers. A small but vigorous tree, it grows best in full sun and closes out the summer with fall colors of pink, red, and orange.

Tightly upright without pruning. Its moderate growth rate makes it a useful landscape plant. Bright golden spring foliage fades to green, followed by pleasing bronze fall color. Selected in Scotland as a seedling cross of the green 'Dawyck' Columnar Beech and the golden variegated variety 'Zlatia'.