Maples of Japan

Colour printed plate from The Yokohama Nursery Co. Ltd. catalogue 'Maples of Japan' (1898). Maples illustrated include: 1. Acer atropurpureum. 2. Acer Oshiiu-beni. 3. Acer Japonicum. 4. Acer sanguineum Seigen. 5. Acer roseum. 6. Acerum versicolor. 7. Acer Osakazuki a) Autumn leave, b) Summer leave. 8. Acer atrodissectum variegatum.

One of the major fashions in gardening in the late ninteenth and early twentieth centuries was the Japanese style. The most successful exporter of plants from Japan was the Yokohama Nursery Company, founded in 1890 by father-and-son team Uhei and Hamakichi Suzuki in Yokohama, Japan. The firm issued English-language catalogues for the export market, both general-stock catalogues and special themed catalogues such as this one for maples. As the firm's fame and popularity grew, it opened branches abroad, including Shanghai, New York and London. The firm exhibited at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show between 1916 and 1939 and is still in operation today: https://www.yokohamaueki.co.jp/en/.