Do you ship to the United Kingdom?

Although we would very much like to ship to the United Kingdom, Brexit has unfortunately made this extremely difficult for small nurseries like ours. Shipping plants within the European Union is straightforward—a parcel to France, for example, can simply be sent and is often delivered within two days. However, plants cannot legally be shipped to the United Kingdom without a phytosanitary certificate and extensive export documentation. The costs, paperwork, and administrative burden involved make small shipments to the UK impractical for both us and our customers.

Fortunately, our trees still find their way to the United Kingdom through several local nurseries that purchase larger quantities from us. British customers can therefore still enjoy our Japanese maples through these partners. Feel free to contact us if you would like the names of UK nurseries that stock our trees.

What do I need to know about shipping?

Please refer to our shipping policy for all shipping-related information.

We would like to emphasize that, for your convenience, The Maple Nursery cannot guarantee the delivery or safety of your plants if you choose a safe place delivery. If you are not at home, we recommend having your parcel delivered to a neighbour or a Parcel Shop.

What should I do when I receive my trees?

Your trees are packed with the utmost care to ensure they arrive in excellent condition. We secure a bag around the pot to retain moisture and soil, use bamboo sticks to keep the pots stable, and add paper for extra protection during transit.

Upon arrival, simply remove the trees from the packaging, take off the bags and bamboo sticks, water them thoroughly, and allow your trees time to acclimatize to their new environment.

How should I care for my newly received trees?

Your trees are supplied in a plastic pot, where they can remain for at least one more growing season. Although they can be planted at any time of the year, we recommend leaving them in their pots initially so they can recover from transport while giving you time to choose the ideal planting location.

When watering potted trees, always check that the water is properly absorbed. Lift the pot—water generously when it feels light, and stop once it feels heavy. Always make sure the potting soil has absorbed the water, as it can sometimes run down the sides of the pot without reaching the roots.

Our trees have already been fertilized at the nursery in April, so there is no need to fertilize them again this season. If you are unsure, please feel free to contact us—over-fertilizing can damage or even kill your tree. The following spring, apply a light dose of slow-release granular fertilizer in April with a 5–6 month release period and no more than 15% nitrogen (for example, Osmocote 15-9-12).

Why do prices differ between countries?

At The Maple Nursery, our mission is to make rare and beautiful Japanese maple cultivars accessible to as many people as possible at fair and transparent prices.

As a Belgian nursery, we benefit from one of the lowest VAT rates on plants in the European Union—just 6%. For example, on a €100 order (including VAT) delivered within Belgium, €5.66 is paid to the Belgian tax authorities.

When shipping to other EU countries, however, we are legally required to charge and remit the local VAT rate of the destination country. In France, for example, where the VAT rate on plants is 10%, we must pay €9.09 in VAT on the same €100 order. In most cases, we absorb this difference ourselves to keep our prices as consistent as possible across Europe.

A few countries, however, apply significantly higher VAT rates on plants than the European average: 27% in Hungary, 25.5% in Finland, 25% in Denmark and Sweden, 23% in Slovakia, 24% in Estonia, 21% in Romania, Latvia and Lithuania and 20% in Bulgaria.

To continue offering our trees in these countries, we have introduced a modest price adjustment: 15% for Hungary, Finland, Denmark, Sweden, and Slovakia, and 10% for Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, and Bulgaria. These increases do not fully offset the VAT differences, and we continue to absorb part of the additional cost ourselves to keep our maples as affordable as possible.

We sincerely appreciate your understanding and warmly encourage you to advocate for lower VAT rates on plants with your local representatives. Everyone deserves the joy of owning a beautiful maple at a fair price.

Why don't you accept reservations?

At The Maple Nursery, we do not accept reservations—and for good reason.

Our Japanese maples need a full growing season before we can determine which plants are ready for sale. Even if we graft ten trees of a particular cultivar, there is no guarantee that all ten will thrive. Some will grow beautifully, while others may struggle or fail altogether. If we accepted reservations in advance and some plants did not make it, we would have to cancel orders and issue refunds, which we would much rather avoid.

In addition, managing reservations is simply not practical for us. Our trees are grown under optimal greenhouse conditions and are sold both through our webshop and other sales channels. With hundreds of different trees, it becomes almost impossible to keep track of which plants are reserved and which remain available without taking valuable time away from what matters most: growing high-quality trees.

Instead, we gradually release our available stock in autumn and announce it through our social media channels (Facebook and Instagram). From that moment on, it is simply first come, first served.