Yesterday I had a list of things to do. I got them all done except “get a watch battery”. I feel pretty good about it. The thing that took the longest was “get Japanese maple”.
I have a pot next to my porch that had a Japanese maple in it. It was a gift from my co-worker Melody. She had gotten it at an auction for the Maryland State Boychoir, but didn’t have a place for it in her own yard. I’d had it for a few years, and it had become rootbound, so the pot didn’t hold water very well. Unfortunately, it died of thirst this spring. It happened at the height of the busy-ness that comes with the end of the school year. I was sad because it was a beautiful tree and it was a gift from a friend.
Yesterday, I went looking for a replacement. Full-grown Japanese maples are expensive! Many of them are in the $200 range. Sheesh! I would never spend that much! I went to several Lowe’s and Home Depot’s hoping for a sale. I found something at the fifth store I went to. A Japanese maple “Bloodgood” in the clearance area. It’s leaves were burned, but it was smaller than other maples I was seeing. The problem was that it was a “Bloodgood”. I had wanted a lace-leaf form. These were lobed. I also wanted a green or yellow leaves. These were red. So was I going to fork out a ton of money for a tree I didn’t like? I checked the clearance price. It was $2.49. Criminy! How could I not buy it?
So I don’t really like this tree, but at least I have it in case it’s all I can find. Here it is. (It’s the one in the black pot):
UPDATE: Here’s a closeup picture of the leaves, per Beth’s request. The newer leaves are redder, as you can see in the lower right corner. In the fall, they darken further.
Will you please take another picture, but put the tree in front of your brick house wall so I can see it’s red lobed leaves?
Many thanks. And, I think I like the “bloodgood” variety.
My son Joe is ruthless when sales people call. He often pretends to be an elderly Japanese man with a hearing problem … just one of his many impressions that keeps the sales people going …
[DISCLAIMER: Japanese readers, please do not contact me. I know the politically correct term is Asian. You may contact Home Depot regarding the sales of their Asian Maples though.]
That is one giant quarter!
I don’t have anything funny to say.
I’d like to refer you to Lauren’s post about self-control and clearance items…..because the pot doesn’t look black, it looks blue, and the leaves do not look red, they look green. I’d say you can be talked into ANYTHING that begins, “clearance priced…”
We have a red japanese maple behind our deck. You can see it when you come over. I didn’t know there was such a thing as a non-red one.