| Hey – this isn't a maple! |
A “botanist” is an expert in, or a student of the scientific study of plants. The root word is botanic, from Greek botanikos, “of herbs.”
| Aristotle (Left) with Theophrastus (Center) and Buchholz (Right) |
The first full-fledged botanist (i.e. one who went beyond the primitive gathering of plants for food, medicine and other useful purposes) was the Greek philosopher/scientist Theophrastus (372 BC-287 BC), a student of Aristotle and his successor in the Lyceum, the Peripatetic school in Athens. It was he who coined the term “botanic.” Aristotle respected him so much that he bequeathed to Theophrastus his library upon his death. Theo was the first known person to write down descriptions of plants in terms of their similarities and differences. His Historia Plantarum and Causae Plantarum (Enquiry Into Plants) was translated into English in 1916 by Sir Arthur Hort – great name, right?, since hortus is Latin for “garden” – but it was actually Arab scholars who preserved the texts during Europe's Dark Ages. Much of Aristotle's and Theophrastus's work*, sadly, has been lost forever, but fortunately we still possess a glimpse into their brilliant, inquisitive minds.
*Approximately 500 plants were described by Theo, however no maples.
| Andrea Cesalpino |
Later, a few European scholars sought to order plants in some systematic method, especially spurred to document their usefulness for medicine. Some of the binomial* luminaries include Brunfels, Fuchs, Cesalpino and Bauhin, way ahead of Linnaeus.
*Note that in the English language the describing word comes before the generic one, while in Latin it is the other way around. So in English, for example, we would say “hand-like maple,” but in Latin it is “Acer palmatum,” or “maple, hand-like.”
| Carl Linne |
Then came the Swede Carl Linne (1707-1778) who was so enamoured with Latin that he changed his name to Carolus Linnaeus. Though he wasn't the first to propose the binomial system, he so arrogantly promoted its use that others bought into it, and one commentator expressed, “He seems so vain as to imagine he can perscribe it to all the world.”* But now his system prevails, cemented by his Species Plantarum published in 1753.
*He described his contribution to science as : “God created, but Linnaeus organized.”
| Linnaeus in Lapland Traditional Dress |
Before developing into a renowned botanist, Linnaeus could be described as a plant explorer. In 1732, while only 25 years of age, he began a 1,200 mile (2,000 km) journey through Lapland and recorded the plants he encountered – some 500 – including about 100 previously unrecorded; however no maples. But importantly, his nomenclatural value was that he believed plant names should be used to designate, and not necessarily to describe, and he was original in that. Of further importance was establishing the concept of precedence, that the earliest published name of plant is the one that should be used.
| Acer palmatum |
Linnaeus coined the name Acer (Latin for “sharp”) due to its pointed lobes, and it is used to group about 250 species, some of which he described first, such as Acer campestre, Acer platanoides, Acer pensylvanicum and others. After his Lapland journey Linnaeus began compiling a binomial name-list of all the plants he came into contact with. Basically he accomplished this task from his professorial chair at the University of Uppsala, while he encouraged his collaborators – whom he called his “apostles” – to travel around the world to collect new species. With their assistance Linnaeus was in possession of 5,900 plants, most of which are housed at the Linnaean Society in London.
| Karl Peter von Thunberg |
Karl Peter von Thunberg (1743-1828) was one such apostle. After studying under Linnaeus at Uppsala, he devoted seven years exploring in southern Africa and Asia collecting and describing many plants and animals new to European science. He is famously known as the Father of South African Botany and the Pioneer of Western Medicine in Japan. In conjunction with the latter he is also known as the “Japanese Linnaeus.” After his years in South Africa, Linnaeus sailed to Japan, arriving in August 1775 at Dejima, a small artificial island – a buffer created to keep the trading Westerners at a safe distance. The Japanese shogun imposed restrictions on Europeans such as Thunberg because the Portuguese had previously worn out their welcome due to missionary activity. At Dejima he was appointed the head surgeon of the trading post and he was slowly granted more freedom to explore for plants because news quickly spread that he was able to assist local doctors with a cure for syphilis, known in Japan as the “Dutch disease.” Interestingly, before Thunberg in Japan, Linnaeus was known to be the local expert for treating gonorrhea in Sweden.
| Cover of Thunberg's Flora Japonica |
With more access into the interior of Japan, Thunberg began collecting many specimens of plants and animals, resulting in two of his scientific works, the Flora Japonica (1784) and the Fauna Japonica (1833). The latter was completed by the German Philip Franz von Siebold who visited Japan between 1823 and 1829.
Thunberg can be credited with first describing Acer palmatum in his Flora Japonica in 1784, but due to Japan's insular, paranoid tendencies, the species wasn't exported to Europe until around 1830, two years after Thunberg's death. Obviously it is now well-established in Western gardens, and we have over a thousand cultivars to try and keep track of. Buchholz is indeed guilty of contributing to the explosion of named selections, but even if I desisted today, other nurserymen and maple aficionados will probably double the number of traded cultivars within the next 10 years. On the cover of Japanese Maples by J.D. Vertrees and Peter Gregory is a promotional blurb by publisher Timber Press (in the latest 2009 edition) that the publication is “The Ultimate book about the aristocrat* of trees” (from The Washington Post). Since a number of species are included in the book, 23 besides Acer palmatum, the publisher's hype is extravagant since many of the inclusions would never be deemed to be “aristocratic,” such as with Acer argutum, capillipes, diabolicum etc., but the Post reviewer seems to not have grasped that while Acer palmatum may be considered “aristocratic,” the myriad of other Japanese maple species are definitely not.
*Aristocrat: from Greek aristos meaning “best.”
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| Acer japonicum 'Abby's Weeping' |
| Acer japonicum 'Vitifolium' |
I wouldn't describe Acer japonicum as “aristocratic” either, but I do marvel at its extraordinary autumn color. Japanese Maples claims that “This important species in the series Palmata is second only to Acer palmatum in contributing to the large number of cultivars in the 'Japanese maples' of commercial nurseries.” According to the above work the A. japonicum species was described by Thunberg (ex Murray) in 1784, while The Hillier Manual of Trees and Shrubs says it was introduced in 1864, and both dates are probably correct as often the first description simply documents the species' existence, while a number of years passed before the plants themselves were ever physically brought to a Western country.
| Acer pictum 'Kamasaka nishiki' |
| Acer pictum 'Naguri nishiki' |
Acer pictum's description was also rendered by Thunberg in 1784, according to Hillier, but the Vertrees/Gregory publication gives credit to botanist Murray. I won't try to sort that out here since the alleged species is considered taxonomically complex, and indeed the Flora of China recognizes five subspecies: A.p. subsp. macropterum, mono, pictum, pubigerum and tricuspis. I'm not qualified to delve into all of that, but we have found commercial success propagating the variegated cultivars 'Usu gumo', 'Hoshi yadori', 'Kamasaka nishiki' and 'Naguri nishiki'.
| Acer pictum 'Usu gumo' |
| Acer pictum 'Usu gumo' |
Years ago I acquired a single specimen of Acer pictum 'Usu gumo', which I admired very much, and knowing the so-called “Painted maple” species was akin to maples in the platanoidea section, I attempted to propagate with using Acer platanoides as rootstock. Numerous attempts produced zero results, but I tried another nurseryman's suggestion to use Acer truncatum instead. The latter succeeds wonderfully, provided one employs healthy young scions and rootstocks. Surprisingly, author De Beaulieu in his An Illustrated Guide to Maples does not list Acer pictum, but does include Acer mono as the prevailing species. For Acer mono Hillier suggests “See Acer pictum,” and the Vertrees/Gregory tome agrees. According to De Beaulieu one can propagate Acer mono by grafting onto Acer platanoides, which again, I have had no success with. I think it appropriate, then, that the platanoidea word ends with six letters that spell “no idea.”
Section Platanoidea No Idea?
| Philip von Siebold |
| Gravestone of Joseph G Zuccarini |
| Acer micranthum |
| Acer rufinerve |
With Japanese maple species we find that a number were first described by Siebold and Zuccarini, such as with Acer carpinifolium, Acer cissifolium, Acer micranthum and Acer rufinerve. Many maple students are familiar with the Baltic* German Philip von Siebold who succeeded Thunberg in Japan, but just who was this Italian Zuccarini? Despite his romantic name, Joseph Gerhard Zuccarini (1797-1848) was not at all Italian, he too was German, a Professor of Botany at the University of Munich. He and Siebold collaborated extensively, a rare example, perhaps, of two botanists able to work together.
*Baltic States are Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania; East of Sweden, South of Finland.
| Carl Maximowicz |
| Sukawa Chonosuke |
| Acer mandshuricum |
| Acer tegmentosum 'White Tigress' |
One also encounters in the literature the name of Carl Johann Maximowicz (1827-1891), a Russian botanist who collected in Japan and who spent most of his life studying the flora of the countries he had visited in the Far East. He worked at the St. Petersburg Botanical Gardens from 1852 as curator of the herbarium collection, becoming Director in 1869. He was actually a Baltic German like Siebold, who sold his services to the Russian institution. Maximowicz's assistant in Japan was Sukawa Chonosuke, and the latter's name was honored with Trillium tschonoskii and Acer tschonoskii. Maximowicz was the first to describe Acer capillipes, Acer mandshuricum, Acer miyabei and Acer tegmentosum. For his efforts he was honored with the name Acer maximowiczii Pax (1899), a Chinese species completely different from the “Nikko maple,” Acer maximowiczianum. In hindsight, to avoid confusion Ferdinand Pax perhaps should have chosen a different specific epithet for Acer maximowiczii.
| Acer paxii |
| Jean Marie Delavay |
| Ferdinand Pax |
| Adrien Rene Franchet |
Ferdinand Pax (1858-1942) himself was honored with the name Acer paxii which was bestowed by French botanist Franchet in 1886. The maple is in the Pentaphylla section, native to southern China and unfortunately only hardy to USDA zone 8. The species was discovered in Yunnan by the French missionary Pere (Father) Jean Marie Delavay (1834-1895). A number of plants are named for the diligent Father, such as Magnolia delavayi, Abies delavayi, and Paeonia delavayi, but he was no botanist so he didn't describe anything scientifically. That scholarly task was accomplished by Adrien Rene Franchet (1834-1900) who was based at the Paris Museum National d'Historie Naturelle. Franchet was in the right place at the right time to document the flood of new plants from China and Japan, based on the collections made by a number of French missionaries.
| Acer longipes 'Gold Coin' |
| Acer davidii |
Franchet is credited with the first description of Acer paxii, mentioned above, and also Acer longipes, Acer davidii and the exceptional, horticulturally-valuable Acer griseum, as well as other Acer species.
| Acer griseum |
| Acer griseum |
| Acer griseum |
As for Acer griseum, the specific epithet griseus means “gray,” referring to the color of the newly emerging leaves. The buds and downy leaves are fascinating to this Acerholic, but the distinguishing feature of the species is the exfoliating cinnamon-brown bark, and I'd fancy a specific name such as Acer exfoliatus superbum, or some-such epithet that celebrates the trunk, it's most ornamental feature; but at least it's commonly referred to as the “Chinese Paperbark maple.”
| Ernest Henry Wilson |
| Davidia involucrata 'Sonoma' |
| Davidia involucrata 'Sonoma' |
Credit for Acer griseum's discovery and introduction goes to Ernest Henry “Chinese” Wilson, the plant explorer sent to China by the English Veitch Nursery firm. Wilson was charged with locating and collecting starts of the “Dove tree,” Davidia involucrata...and to not “waste his time on anything else.” Wilson found the Davidia – though not easily – and collected a prodigious amount of seed in 1901 which germinated satisfactorily in Veitch's seed beds. One hundred and twenty+ years later, we find that the then “Holy Grail” of tree searches for the Davidia has resulted in its inclusion in large-estate and arboreta plantings only, and it is still so rarely found in horticulture that in my home-town of Forest Grove Oregon (population 22,000) I'm unable to locate a single specimen. Of course I grow Davidia, of course I do, for that's what I do, but its paucity in American landscapes is notable in comparison to Acer griseum, for the latter now thrives in many private and public gardens, and indeed the once-rarely-found A. griseum is so common-place that in Oregon it is frequently encountered as a well-behaved, tough, easy-to-grow urban and suburban street tree.
| Acer oliverianum |
| Kew Gardens |
| Kew Gardens |
Also, while in search for Davidia, Wilson encountered Acer oliverianum and introduced it to England. It had been named previously by Ferdinand Pax in 1889, and credit for its discovery goes to Augustine Henry, a British botanist and customs inspector who, while stationed in China, was most helpful to Wilson. The species from Yunnan and Hubei provinces was named in honor of Daniel Oliver (1830-1916), the Librarian of the Herbarium at RBG Kew from 1860-1890, and Keeper there from 1864-1890, but a botanist who never set foot in China. Acer oliverianum has been called the “Chinese” Japanese maple due to the A. palmatum similarity, and indeed it is in the Section Palmata and can be propagated by grafting onto Acer palmatum.* Acer oliverianum possesses five-lobed hand-like leaves that are glossy green and slightly larger than with Acer palmatum, but unfortunately it is probably one zone less hardy, to USDA zone 6.
*There's a lot to be said about the “Secrets of the Orient,” and after 20 years of marriage to a Japanese woman I can attest to that truism. While visiting a Saitama-area maple nursery with Haruko, the owner (who had warmed to my wife) gave me a wink and an elbow-rib nudge, then confided that his “secret” to produce the most vibrantly variegated cultivars of Acer palmatum was to use A. oliverianum, rather than A. palmatum, as rootstock. Hmm..I suspected that virtually any plant of Japanese origin, such as Acer palmatum, could perhaps create a less than perfect union if combined with a Chinese species...and that often a certain amount of “stress” on a plant can cause a condition whereby an ornamental feature can be enhanced. In other words, an Acer palmatum 'Lileeanne's Jewel', or an Acer buergerianum 'Hana chiru sato' or an Acer sieboldianum 'Kumoi nishiki' could produce more vividly-variegated foliage if the Chinese A. oliverianum was employed as rootstock. I wanted to entertain that theory with empirical, scientific testing but never found the time nor energy to do so...but I encourage a younger, more zealous plantsman to conduct the experiment.
| Acer oliverianum 'Hot Blonde' |
| Acer oliverianum 'Hot Blonde' |
| Acer oliverianum 'Hot Blonde' |
| Acer 'Hot Sauce' |
Acer oliverianum has remained rare in horticulture although it forms an attractive small, upright tree with excellent autumn color. My interest in it is due to the chance hybrid with Acer palmatum that was discovered by MrMaple Nursery in North Carolina. The cross features sturdy, durable leaves colored yellow in spring and summer, followed by bright crimson in autumn. Admirably, the golden leaves can withstand full sun in many climates, and in fact it is a member in their “Heatseekers Series,” those maples promoted as heat-tolerant for the South. A red-leaved selection, 'Hot Sauce', is another Heatseeker member from MrMaple that originated in Japan as a Masayoshi Yano selection from a batch of Acer oliverianum seedlings. The pioneering Nichols brothers, with their introductions, will hopefully bring “Oliver's maple” into more prominence.
| Acer circinatum |
| Acer macrophyllum |
| Acer macrophyllum |
I'll finish this presentation with two maple species native to Oregon, Acer circinatum and Acer macrophyllum, both of which occur on my two western Oregon farms. One must travel (by car) about an hour and a half further to the east, up the Columbia River Gorge, to find the third native-to-Oregon species, Acer glabrum subsp. douglasii. The latter has no selected cultivars and the species itself is never found in any plebeian (public) landscape.
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| Acer circinatum |
| David Douglas |
Both Acer macrophyllum (the “Oregon maple”) and circinatum (the “Vine maple”) were first scientifically described by Frederick Traugott Pursh (1774-1820), a German-American botanist who was in a position to study the plants collected on the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Pursh was able to produce a Systematic Arrangement and Description of the Plants of North America, but otherwise his brief tenure in America was limited by poor health (alcoholism), and he passed away at age 46. Before his demise he introduced Acer macrophyllum, which was later popularized by David Douglas in 1826. Also in 1826 Douglas introduced Acer circinatum. So both Northwest American species have a Pursh-Douglas connection, but neither of the two foreigners to America ever met each other...at least as far as I know.
| Acer circinatum 'Sunglow' |
| Acer circinatum 'Sunny Sister' |
The “Vine maple” is used in Northwest landscapes, often presented as a “clump” due to its straggly appearance as an individual specimen. My unofficial survey finds them often planted at the corners of bank buildings and dentist's offices where they frequently thrive in poor, compacted soil. I have introduced A.c. 'Sunglow' and 'Sunny Sister', but both selections require PM shade to perform their best.
| Acer macrophyllum 'Mocha Rose' |
| Acer macrophyllum 'Mocha Rose' |
| Acer macrophyllum 'Mocha Rose' |
Acer macrophyllum is a wonderful species in the wild, but in cultivation it gains excessive size, so it's seldom planted. Nevertheless I have introduced the very ornamental 'Mocha Rose' which is more compact than the type, and which offers unusual, colorful excitement to the spring landscape.
| Acer glabrum subsp. douglasii |
| Acer glabrum subsp. douglasii |
At the end of the day, though, the three North American species are horticulturally insignificant, but I continue to champion them because we have been acquainted since my youth.
| Theophrastus |
This review of maple explorers and botanists does not exhaust the subject (though you may be exhausted after all). Sorry that there were no women involved or I certainly would have presented them. You could say that if none of these individuals ever existed all of the trees would have been discovered and described eventually, but we moderns should celebrate those who did it first.
Epilogue
| Peter Gregory with Acer circinatum 'W.B. Hoyt' |
I would like to dedicate this presentation, excluding any mistakes and false assumptions, to the late Peter Gregory, the first Chairman of the Maple Society. Peter's scholarly expertise was evident to all, from botanists to beginners, and his enthusiasm for the Acer genus was infectious. He was a great apostle for a wonderful group of trees.