small tree
Vine maple
Acer circinatum
Preview: plant data is awaiting horticulturist review. A professional horticulturist hasn't reviewed our plant table yet. Lists still follow fixed rules for zone, sun, pets, deer and invasive status.
Acer circinatum is a deciduous small tree for gardens in zones 5–9. It grows 10–20 ft tall and 10–20 ft wide, so plant it 13.5 ft apart. Give it part sun to shade and average water. It is grown for its foliage rather than its flowers. In a FloraVista list it usually plays the anchor role: the one larger plant that anchors the back of a bigger bed. It is native to the Pacific Northwest and California. Deer do eat it, and it is not listed as toxic to dogs or cats. Our rules leave it out of lists in the Southeast, Florida and the Gulf, Texas and the South-Central states, the Desert Southwest, the Midwest, the Great Plains, the Mountain West, the Northeast and the Mid-Atlantic, where summer heat, humidity or mild winters hold it back even inside its zone range.
Facts from our plant table
- Botanical name
- Acer circinatum
- Plant type
- Small tree, deciduous
- Hardiness zones
- 5 to 9
- Sun
- Part sun (4–6 hours); Part shade (2–4 hours); Shade (under 2 hours)
- Water
- Medium
- Soil
- Likes moist, well-drained soil rich in organic matter.
- Mature size
- 10–20 ft tall × 10–20 ft wide
- Spacing
- 13.5 ft apart (centre to centre)
- Growth rate
- Medium
- Bloom
- Grown for foliage
- Roles in a bed
- Anchor
- Styles
- natural, classic
- Deer resistance
- Low: deer eat it
- Pets
- Not listed as toxic to dogs or cats. Not on the ASPCA toxic list; the maple toxicity concern (wilted red maple leaves) is for horses.
- Native to
- Pacific Northwest and California
- Pot size and price
- 5-gallon pot, typically $45–$80 (sometimes stocked)
- Plant in
- Spring or Fall
- First-year watering
- Water deeply once or twice a week through the first summer, more in heat waves, so the root ball never dries out.
- Pruning
- Prune lightly in late winter to show the branch structure.
Sources: Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder; ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant list; Western extension deer-resistance lists (CSU, UC); state noxious weed lists / Invasive Plant Atlas of the US; typical 2026 US garden-centre and big-box listings. Not yet reviewed by a horticulturist.
Good companions
The plants our list engine most often puts in the same bed as Vine maple, across the sun, zone, pet, deer and style combinations it fits.
- Arrowwood viburnum 'Blue Muffin'Viburnum dentatum 'Christom'shrub · zones 3–8
- Blue false indigoBaptisia australisperennial · zones 3–9
- Common yarrowAchillea millefoliumperennial · zones 3–9
- Creeping Oregon grapeMahonia repensgroundcover · zones 4–8
- Creeping phloxPhlox subulatagroundcover · zones 3–9
- Deer grassMuhlenbergia rigensornamental grass · zones 7–11
If you can't find it
Plants that do the same job and pass the same rules for the conditions Vine maple suits.
- Flowering dogwoodCornus floridazones 5–9 · not flagged toxic to pets
- Weeping redbud 'Ruby Falls'Cercis canadensis 'Ruby Falls'zones 5–9 · not flagged toxic to pets
- Pagoda dogwoodCornus alternifoliazones 3–7 · not flagged toxic to pets
- Northern bayberryMorella pensylvanicazones 3–7 · not flagged toxic to pets
How this page was made
This page was generated from this plant's record in FloraVista's plant table by fixed rules. The companions and substitutes come from the lists our rules engine composes. No named expert has reviewed this page.
Data status: the plant table is awaiting review by a horticulturist. Check each plant with a local nursery or extension office before you buy.
Sources
- Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder, state extension services and the USDA PLANTS database (zones, size, sun, water, bloom, native range)
- ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists (dog and cat toxicity)
- Rutgers NJAES and regional extension deer-resistance ratings
- State noxious-weed and invasive-plant lists and the Invasive Plant Atlas of the US
- Typical US garden-centre listings (pot size and price band)
Generated . How FloraVista chooses plants