• Emperor Japanese Maple
  • Emperor Japanese Maple
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Emperor Japanese Maple

Emperor Japanese Maple

The Emperor Japanese Maple is a stunning ornamental tree admired for its rich burgundy-red foliage, elegant branching, and ever-changing seasonal beauty.

$99.95
$129.95 $99.95
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Please Note: This product can not be shipped to AK, AZ, HI, OR
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Emperor Japanese Maple Treebute

A living tribute with color that lasts from spring through fall.

The Emperor Japanese Maple offers striking, deep purple-red foliage that holds its color through spring and summer before turning a brilliant crimson in fall. Its graceful, upright form and blackish-red bark keep it a quiet focal point even through winter, once the leaves have fallen.

Each Treebute is a complete memorial tree kit designed to be planted at home, a hands-on ritual that many people find grounding and healing.

The act of planting gives your hands something purposeful to do and creates meaning, forming a living connection that continues to grow.


What Happens After You Order

Step 1

Your tree is prepared and shipped with care from our nursery.

Step 2

Your kit arrives ready to plant, with your healthy tree, care guide, and personalized memorial message.

Step 3

Follow the simple steps to plant your living memorial, whenever the time feels right.

Step 4

Care for your tree, and watch it grow over the years.

Why You'll Love the Emperor Japanese Maple

  • Color that lasts for months: deep purple-red foliage holds through spring and summer before turning crimson in fall.
  • Later leaf-out for added protection: buds about two weeks later than similar varieties, helping new growth avoid damage from late spring frost.
  • Visual interest in winter, too: blackish-red bark stands out once the leaves have dropped, keeping your tribute noticeable year-round.


A Living Memorial That Grows With You

Finding a meaningful way to honor someone you love can feel overwhelming. A Treebute tree offers something different, a living expression of love that grows stronger each year. It gives your hands something to do and your heart something to hold.

The act of planting creates meaning. The growth creates hope. The tree creates a place to remember.

What Comes With Your Treebute Kit
  • Hardy tribute tree (size you select)
  • Step-by-step planting & watering care guide
  • Personalized memorial message

Optional Add-Ons (Customize Your Treebute Kit)

  • Planter (choose your style & size)
  • Premium potting mix (for patio planting)
  • Cremation-safe organic soil blend (for ashes, if/when you're ready)

Many customers plant without ashes - and that's just as meaningful.

Everything arrives together, ready to plant.

Nurturing Your Memorial Tribute

Even if you're new to planting, the Emperor Japanese Maple is a vigorous, reliable grower with color that carries it through every season.

  • Light: Full sun to partial shade. Some afternoon shade helps protect foliage color in hotter climates.

  • Water: Keep soil consistently moist but not soggy, especially while your maple is establishing.

  • Space: Plan for a mature size of about 15 to 20 feet tall and wide. Choose a spot where its wide, graceful crown has room to develop.

This maple isn't particular about soil pH, but it does best in rich, well-drained soil. A layer of mulch around the base helps retain moisture and protect the roots through winter.

Optional: Plant with Cremation Ashes - The Treebute® Difference

For those wishing to incorporate cremation ashes, your kit includes the option to add our Treebute® organic soil blend. This specially formulated mixture creates a safe, nurturing foundation for your tree - transforming ashes into living growth.

Your tree is meaningful with or without ashes - this is simply another way to honor someone you love.

Plant Specifications:

Botanical Name:
Acer palmatum Wolff EMPEROR 1®
Growth Rate Value:
Moderate
Mature Height Value:
12-15 ft.
Mature Width Value:
12-15 ft.
Sunlight Value:
Part Sun
Does Not Ship To:
AK, AZ, HI, OR
Growing Zones:
5-8 outdoors

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What if they're not ready to plant right away?

The kit includes simple instructions to care for your tree until planting time. Many customers plant on a significant date, a birthday, an anniversary, or another day that feels right.

What's included in a Treebute Kit?

Each kit includes a young, healthy Emperor Japanese Maple tree, a step-by-step planting and watering care guide, and a personalized memorial message. One thoughtfully packaged kit, everything arrives together, ready to plant.

Can I grow it in a container or indoors?

The Emperor Japanese Maple is an outdoor tree. It is hardy and heat tolerant, and it can be grown in a large container on a patio for several years before it moves to a permanent spot in the ground.

Can I plant a memorial tree with cremation ashes?

Yes. Treebute Kits offer the option to add our Treebute organic soil blend, specially formulated to safely mix with cremation ashes and offset their naturally high pH and sodium, creating a nurturing foundation for healthy tree growth. It works for a person's or a pet's ashes.

How big does it get, and how long will it live?

The Emperor Japanese Maple grows into an upright tree of about 12 to 15 feet tall and wide. Japanese maples are long lived, flourishing for decades, and many live far longer with good care, becoming a living memorial that deepens with time. You can also keep it smaller with simple pruning.

Is this easy to care for? We're not experienced gardeners.

Yes. Emperor is one of the hardiest and most forgiving Japanese maples. It leafs out later in spring, which helps it avoid late frost, and it handles sun and heat well. It needs little more than the right light and watering when the soil feels dry, and every kit arrives with a clear, step by step guide.

Need guidance? Contact us anytime. We’re happy to help.

Can I plant ashes without any special soil treatment?

We strongly advise against it and doing so will void the Warranty. Planting cremation ashes directly with a tree, without proper treatment, can stress or even kill the plant. The high sodium and pH levels create conditions that are hostile to root development. If you want your memorial tree to thrive for years to come, using the Treebute Organic Soil Blend is essential when incorporating ashes.

What makes Treebute different from other memorial tree options?

Treebute is designed to be planted at home, in your own yard, patio, or indoor space. Unlike distant memorial forests where a tree is planted somewhere you may never visit, a Treebute grows right where you can see it. It becomes a gentle, living presence in your daily life.

Every kit includes a healthy tree of your choice, clear planting and care instructions, and the option to add scientifically formulated soil for safe ash incorporation. And our team understands that every memorial is deeply personal.

How is this different from having a tree planted in a forest?

Forest donation programs plant something far away and send a card. A Treebute Kit delivers a real, living plant to your door, or to your recipient's door, so it can be planted and tended at home and seen every day. It becomes part of daily life, not a distant certificate.