Sango Kaku Coral Bark Japanese Maple

Acer palmatum ‘Sango Kaku’

Plant Details

USDA Plant Hardiness Zones: 5a-9a Find Your Zone

Height at Maturity: 20-25′

Width at Maturity: 15-20′

Growth Habit / Form: Upright, Vase Shape

Growth Rate: Moderate, Fast

Foliage Color in Spring: Lime Green

Foliage Color in Summer: Medium Green

Foliage Color in Fall: Golden Yellow, Orange, Red, Pink

Light Needs: Full Sun or Mostly Sun, Morning Sun with Dappled or Afternoon Shade, All Day Filtered Sun, Morning Shade with Evening Sun

Water Needs: Average, moderately drought tolerant when established

Soil Type: Sandy, Loam & Clay (Condition heavy clay soils when planting)

Drainage: Well drained soil is a must!

Soil pH: 5.0 – 7.0 is ideal

Maintenance: Low

Resistances: Deer – more info, Heat Tolerant, Insect, Disease, Sun Tolerant

Description

A year round color factory in the landscape, the ‘Sango Kaku’ Japanese Maple, commonly called Coral Bark Maple, lives up to its name. In Japanese, ‘Sango Kaku’ means “Coral Tower”…and refers to the almost fluorescent coral-red color its branches and stems turn during the fall and winter persisting into spring. In early spring new leaves emerge an intense lime-green color that is a stunning contrast to the red branches – truly a sight to behold! The leaves turn light to medium green by summer and then to bright golden-yellow in fall fading to shades of orange, red and pink before falling. Though growing 20 to 25 feet tall and 15 to 20 feet wide at maturity, Sango Kaku’s upright vase shape makes it a good fit in smaller garden spaces. An excellent accent or focal point specimen tree in home foundation plantings landscape borders.

Landscape & Garden Uses

To showcase its magnificence and beauty, the Sango Kaku Coral Bark Japanese Maple is best used as a focal point specimen to draw attention to a specific area of the home or landscape. That being said, you can plant them in groupings of three or plant one on both sides of an entryway to accentuate the entrance.

Suggest Spacing: At least 20 feet apart for space between trees

Container culture can extend the useful range of Japanese Maples. They are extremely easy to grow in containers, a practice taken to its most extreme form in the art of bonsai.

Note: One Japanese Maple can make a landscape…that is if you don’t overcrowd it with other trees and plants. Therefore, when selecting companions to plant under or around your Japanese Maple, make sure to select low-growing shrubs or groundcover plants that won’t interfere with or overcrowd your tree.

Note: For our customers who live and garden north of USDA Plant Hardiness Zone 5a, where this Japanese Maple variety is not reliably winter hardy, you’ll be happy to know it can be grown in containers that can be brought indoors during winter and placed back outside when temperatures warm up in spring.

Growing Preferences

Though delicate looking, Japanese Maples are actually very tough and long-lived trees. They are very easy to grow. Container culture can extend their useful range. They are extremely easy to grow in containers, a practice taken to its most extreme form in the art of bonsai.

In their natural habitat, Japanese Maples are understory trees, growing in dappled forest sunlight at the edges of woodlands. Ideally they prefer to be grown in similar conditions. That said, you can find a complete listing of our sun-tolerant Japanese Maple varieties here, of which the Sango Kaku Coral Bark is one of the most sun tolerant.

Most any average garden soil will grow Japanese Maples. They prefer a moist but well-drained soil rich in organic matter. As with so many other ornamental plants and trees, constantly soggy or wet soil can be problematic. So make sure to plant your Japanese Maple in a well-drained site.

Helpful Articles

Click on a link below to find helpful advice from our experts on how to plant and care for Japanese Maple trees.

How To Plant A Japanese Maple Tree In The Ground

How to Plant A Japanese Maple Tree In A Pot

How To Fertilize And Water A Japanese Maple Tree

How To Prune A Japanese Maple

Plant Long & Prosper!

Meet The Wilson Brothers & Staff

Questions? Contact Us!

Great service & support via text before purchase, allowed me to choose from several based on photos. My red bark Japanese maple arrived healthy & beautiful!———————————————————————We are so glad you are pleased and we hope you enjoy it for years to come! Thanks for the kind words and great review! 🙂 Beth Steele | WBG

I was blown away when I opened this tree from Wilson Bros; it was/is absolutely amazing! This tree arrived healthy, robust, and just gorgeous. The colors are vibrant and it is very full – not a twig with a few leaves. I love shopping here for my landscaping trees and plants; Wilson Bros have never let me down. Thank you so much!!!—————————————————————————We are so glad you are pleased and we hope you enjoy it for years to come! Thanks for the kind words and great review! 🙂 Beth Steele | WBG

So glad I ordered this dormant and could see the red bark right away. It is a bright pop of color to the front corner of the house. Will attempt to grow it in a large pot to somewhat restrict the size. Would highly recommend.—————————————We are so glad you are pleased and we hope you enjoy it for years to come! Thanks for the great review! 🙂 Beth Steele | WBG

My Japanese maple arrived quickly and was securely packaged. It had been pruned into a nice shape and was very healthy. The yellows leaves and red bark are beautiful. I definitely will purchase from this company again.———————————————————–We are so glad you are pleased and we hope you enjoy it for years to come! Thanks for the kind words and great review! 🙂 Beth Steele | WBG

Hi,
I received the Sango Kaku Maple tree. It is beautiful. Thank you.————————————————————–We are so glad you are pleased and we hope you enjoy it for years to come! Thanks for the great review! 🙂 Beth Steele | WBG

I couldn’t be more pleased with this purchase! The tree was extremely well packed and arrived in great condition. The red stems are unique and this is exactly the type of tree that I wanted. Highly recommended.————————Thanks for the photo! We are so glad you are pleased and we hope you enjoy it for years to come! Thanks for the kind words and great review! 🙂 Beth Steele | WBG

The tree arrived in perfect condition. It looks very healthy and is a beautiful tree. Shipping was very prompt and arrived as expected. I am impressed with Wilson Bros Gardens.——————————————-We are so glad you are pleased and we hope you enjoy it for years to come! Thanks for the kind words and great review! 🙂 Beth Steele | WBG

I bought 2 coral barks and they arrived beautifully packaged. These are Gorgeous! Thanks for healthy very beautiful trees. I’ve ordered them from other places before and not nearly the quality of these beauties!! Instructions were great too! Thanks!———————————-We are so glad you are pleased and we hope you enjoy them for years to come! Thanks for the great review! Thanks for the kind words! 🙂 Beth Steele | WBG

The coral bark Japanese maple tree we received arrived in great condition. It was bigger than we even hoped for. In fact, it was a little bent over because it was bigger than the box but I’m sure it will straighten back up. Very pleased with Wilson Bros.——————————-Thanks for the great review! We are so glad you are pleased! It should straighten out! Beth | WBG 🙂

The tree arrived in a perfect condition even the soil is still moist. Waiting for a warmer weather to plant in ground.——————————–WBG Reply: Hi Wesley, Thanks so much for taking the time to provide your review of the Sango Kaku Coral Bark Japanese Maple. We are so glad you are pleased and we hope you enjoy it for years to come!
Beth Steele | Wilson Bros Gardens