Autumnal highlights: High five!

As part of Westonbirt's activities for families this October, Caroline Bennett from our Learning and Participation Team has created a trail of autumnal highlights which will run from 29 October - 2 November. Here are some of the fascinating facts she has researched...

Famous around the world for our Maple Collection, Acer glade at Westonbirt Arboretum is the place to be in autumn. We hold the national collections of maple species and Japanese maple (Acer Palmatum) cultivars.

The genus Acer is the botanical name for all Maples. Acer means “sharp”, referring to the sharp points of the tips of the leaves.

The palmatum part of Acer palmatum refers to the hand like leaves of these trees with five “fingers” on each leaf.

We have 355 different cultivars of Acer Palmatum. This means they are all the same species but each one has a variation of some kind. Look around, which cultivar is your favourite?

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Become a member of the Friends of Westonbirt Arboretum and your kids will go free for a year. Join now...