Appearance
''Acer ginnala'' is a deciduous spreading shrub or small tree growing to 3–10 m tall, with a short trunk up to 20–40 cm diameter and slender branches. The bark is thin, dull gray-brown, and smooth at first but becoming shallowly fissured on old plants. The leaves are opposite and simple, 4–10 cm long and 3–6 cm wide, deeply palmately lobed with three or five lobes, of which two small basal lobes and three larger apical lobes; the lobes are coarsely and irregularly toothed, and the upper leaf surface glossy. The leaves turn brilliant orange to red in autumn, and are on slender, often pink-tinged, petioles 3–5 cm long. The flowers are yellow-green, 5–8 mm diameter, produced in spreading panicles in spring as the leaves open. The fruit is a paired reddish samara, 8–10 mm long with a 1.5–2 cm wing, maturing in late summer to early autumn.
Uses
''Acer ginnala'' is grown as an ornamental plant in northern regions of Europe and North America. It is the most cold-tolerant maple, hardy to zone 2. It is naturalised in parts of North America. Planted on exceptional sites facing south west with consistent moisture and light loamy soils, this tree can grow 3 to 4 feet per year making it a fast grower. It is often planted as a shrub along borders.In the UK it has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
It is also valued in Japan and elsewhere as a species suitable for bonsai.
It is a nonnative invasive species in parts of northern America.
References:
Some text fragments are auto parsed from Wikipedia.
