Acer platanoides Marylka - Norway Maple

The 'Marylka' BESKID Acer platanoides is a rare variety of Polish Maple, atypical in shape. It forms a small tree with a very upright habit, with slightly flared branches pointing upwards. Its astonishing leaves are very wavy and crinkled, grouped in clusters. They are bright green when young and darken with age. They provide a beautiful autumn colouration in shades of yellow to orange. This maple only reaches a height of 4m at maturity and a width of 1m. It is not demanding in terms of soil, as long as it is well-draining and sufficiently deep.                                         

Native to the Caucasus, widespread in Europe from Scandinavia to Spain and eastwards to Russia, Acer platanoides is a large deciduous tree with fast growth, often associated with oak, lime, and elm in mountain forests. It can live up to 200 years.

'Marylka' BESKID is a Polish cultivar from the Janusz Szewczyk nursery, found among the seedlings used as rootstock around 1998, and introduced into cultivation in 2005. At 10 years old, this single-stemmed tree with an upright and narrow habit reaches a height of about 2.5m with a growth rate of 25cm per year. Its foliage is deciduous. The leaves are opposite, palmate, 10 to 20cm long, with 5 very pointed, toothed lobes. The leaves, borne on long petioles, are smooth and glossy. They are curiously pleated and take on a beautiful yellow to coppery colour in autumn. The flowering, in the form of corymbs of tiny yellow-green flowers, is particularly nectar-rich followed by winged, 3 to 5cm long fruits called samaras in June. The bark of this tree is grey-brown, almost smooth, marked with numerous shallow longitudinal cracks.

The 'Marylka' BESKID Acer platanoides is an easy-to-grow, very hardy tree, suitable for all types of soil as long as it is deep. It grows in ordinary, moderately fertile, and moderately moist soil, in a sunny or semi-shady location. It is suitable for urban environments and shows good resistance to harsh weather conditions. With its very modest growth, it is suitable for gardens of all sizes, bringing height and architectural appeal alongside trees and shrubs with more rounded silhouettes.