Puget pink

Character & interest

A connoisseur’s choice if you want a pink spring effect on a large-garden maple (far more vigorous and “tree-like” than a Japanese maple). The display is at its best on the first flush: once the leaves mature, the plant becomes more discreet, then regains interest late in the season with its yellow autumn color. It works very well as a specimen to fully enjoy the spring flush.

Colours

• Spring : young leaves strongly marked salmon pink / shrimp pink.

• Summer : chartreuse green, then a truer green as the season progresses.

• Autumn : yellow, often with orange nuances.

Habit & vigour

Rounded habit, often described as stocky/compact and well-branched. Moderate to good vigor: steady growth, with a naturally dense silhouette.

Indicative size

Observed orders of magnitude depending on sources and training:

• around 3.5–4 m at about 10 years (often stated),

• at maturity, it can form a small tree of about 6–7 m (depending on soil, climate, and training),

• the spread is often comparable to the height once established.

Exposure

Gentle sun / bright partial shade. To preserve foliage quality and limit stress on the lighter areas, morning sun with light afternoon shade is preferable in hot climates or on drying soils.

Origin & history

‘Puget Pink’ is linked to Heronswood Nursery (Kingston, Washington), near Puget Sound, which introduced it in its catalogues in the mid-1990s. It is a seedling of ‘Prinz Handjery’. The term “Puget Pink Group” is also encountered: at Heronswood, it was long distributed as very similar seedlings (“nearly true”), while the name ‘Puget Pink’ applies to the original clone (and grafted plants derived from it).