Inaba Shidare Maple

The Inaba Shidare Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum ‘Inaba Shidare’) is a small-sized tree with a broad canopy. Its leaves have colors that make it distinctive of a Japanese maple, showing deep reddish-purple leaves throughout the spring and summer and a more crimson red in fall. This cultivar is distinct for its lace-like, very deeply cut leaves (dissected) and branches that grow upright but tend to droop downward in a cascading, weeping form.

The Inaba Shidare Maple is low-branching and is particularly good at retaining its purple leaf color throughout the heat of the summer. It has been propagated on the islands of Japan since the mid 1800s, and does well in full or partial sun and prefers moist, well-drained soils. It may need protection from afternoon sun in warmer climates.