Acer palmatum 'Beni komachi'

Matsumurae Group
Variegated

The name means red beautiful little girl, and aptly describes this attractive maple. Emerging foliage in spring is red but turns to a dark purple fairly quick. As the summer heat approaches the small crinkled leaves turn a very nice dark green but remain edged in purple giving this plant one of the most unique textures in the garden. 'Beni komachi' is hard to propagate and slow growing but will eventually grow into a small tree. Fast growing stems with large atypical leaves should be removed. 'Beni komachi' prefers to be protected from afternoon sun in hot climates and sometimes gets powdery mildew in late summer, which is not at all harmful to the plant.