ACER PALMATUM 'ORANGE DREAM'

I bought an Acer palmatum 'Orange Dream' from a seller on Amazon UK, a seller I had happily used several times before but Orange Dream looked nothing more than a twig when it arrived and a long way from the two foot bush advertised.  I was refunded but it means that it will take longer before the Orange Dream can put on a decent show.  I think I might be destined not to have Orange Dream as vine weevils ate my last one which was a lot bigger than the one shown below. I got rid of the weevils and their voracious offspring and have hopes for the new one. 

Young Acer palmatum 'Orange Dream' - May 2026

Note that the young shrub is planted plastic pot within a heavier terracotta pot. Melcourt Sylvabark Pine Bark Mini Much is packed around the plastic pot, giving it stability.  

Acer palmatum 'Orange Dream' - October 2025

Orange Dream has the RHS Award of Garden Merit so that's encouraging. The RHS describe it as a "medium-sized bushy deciduous shrub, up to 3 metres. It has yellow leaves in spring, green in summer and orange-yellow in autumn. The bark is bright green and reddish-purple flowers in summer may be followed by red fruits". 

Interestingly, on the very same webpage, the RHS says Orange Dream grows up to three metres while further down the page they say it can achieve 4 x 4 metres in 10 to 20 years. 

Orange Dream likes acidic to neutral soil, full or partial shade, and any aspect except North. It is fully hardy at H6 and needs to be sheltered.  The RHS adds "Grow in a moist but well-drained soil. Leaf colour is best in partial shade although full sun can be tolerated.  Leaf scorch can be caused by lack of soil moisture or excessive exposure."

Note:  I got rid of vine weevils and their larvae by bombarding my garden with Nemasys. It was expensive but not as expensive as having to replace expensive plants.  They may come back one day but for now everything seems okay.  Keep checking the roots of bought plants. 

Orange Dream 2014, destroyed by vine weevils,  

Vine weevil larvae - May 2016