Paperbark maple

Paperbark Maple is a small deciduous, oval to oval-rounded tree with slender upright branching. It is particularly noted for its exfoliating orange to reddish-brown bark and its showy orange to red fall color. It is native to mixed forests in central China. Bark on the trunk and limbs is extremely ornamental because it peels into large curls which remain on the tree rather than falling to the ground, often in attractive contrast to the tan to rose-brown inner back. Leaves are green above, but frosty blue -green to gray-green with fine hairs beneath. Fall color varies, typically ranging from showy shades of orange and red to less spectacular shades of redish-green to bronze-green. Ornamentally insignificant yellowish flowers bloom in April-early May in c