Unfortunately, there are two trees grown with the name 'Chitose yama'. The original, a red clone from Japan dating back to the list of 1882 and this one, a green clone, named at Exbury gardens in England around 1990. The name refers to the mountains near the town of Chitose on the Japanese island of Hokkaido.  Since this tree has no legitimate claim to the name being second, we refer to it as the "Exbury form" of 'Chitose yama'.  

All that aside, this is a wonderful tree. Good enough to win the Royal Horticulture Society Award of Garden Merritt in 1993. In early spring the leaves emerge a distinctive  pale green with red tips covered with a white pubescence. If this weren't striking enough the entire tree is usually covered with an abundance of beautiful little red blooms. As temperatures warm and summer approaches the heavily textured leaves turn olive green complimented by the now ripe red samaras adorning the tree. As if all this were not enough, the real show starts in fall when this form of 'Chitose yama' turns a traffic stopping bright red that literally glows. Usually as wide as tall, mature specimens of this clone become exceptionally graceful.