Spherical maple is at the top of the wish list for the creative front garden. This guide gets to the heart of how the elegant tree fits harmoniously into the garden design and becomes an impressive eye-catcher.
What conditions does a maple maple need in the front garden and which plants suit it?
A ball maple tree in the front garden needs a sunny to partially shaded location, normal garden soil (pH 5.5-8.0) and should be well-drained. Suitable underplants are porcelain flowers, spotted deadnettle or phlox. Topiary pruning is rarely necessary.
Site conditions set the course – tips for the best spot in the front garden
The ball maple is not a visually quiet thing. The refined version of the local Norway maple was bred to line avenues, flank entrances and decorate front gardens. Of course, the deciduous tree can only fulfill its representative tasks perfectly if it is provided with the right conditions. We have compiled fundamental criteria for the location in the front garden for you below:
- In a sunny to partially shaded spot in an exposed position
- Normal garden soil with a pH between 5.5 and 8.0
- Fresh and well drained
The broad site amplitude only excludes extreme conditions such as shade, waterlogging and acidic moorland. Consequently, a ball maple is the first choice to beautify the front garden on the south, west and east sides. Only in the northern direction does growth fall far short of expectations.
Floral foot soldiers increase the visual presence - tips for underplanting
With suitable underplanting, imaginative home gardeners emphasize the special charm of the maple maple. Since the deciduous tree mainly roots just below the surface of the earth, the focus is on robust ground cover. The following perennials can easily cope with root pressure and partial shade below a dense foliage crown:
- Porcelain flower (Saxifraga x urbium) impresses with evergreen leaf rosettes and white flowers; 5-20 cm growth height
- Spotted deadnettle (Lamium maculatum), the natural underplanting with pink flowers from May to June; 15-20cm
- Flame flower (Phlox stolonifera) delights with its dark-pink sea of flowers in spring; 20-30 cm growth height
If you are looking for a higher growing underplant, we would like to recommend the 100 to 150 cm high dwarf pheasant spar (Physocarpus opulifolius). The robust perennial thrives equally well in sunny and shady locations, produces creamy white flowers in early summer and is completely hardy.
Tip
Spherical maple is very popular with home gardeners who are short on time because it forms its round crown without regular pruning. Pruning care is limited to thinning at intervals of 2 to 3 years. Only with advanced age does the crown tend to change into a flattened egg shape, which makes a regular cut useful.
