Red MapleAcer rubrum

Sugar MapleAcer saccharum

Silver MapleAcer saccharinum

B A R K

TEXTUREOlder trees: ridged and broken

into plate like scales. Young trees: smooth.

Older trees: rough and deeply furrowed. Young trees: smooth

and slightly fissured.

Older trees: somewhat furrowed,separates into thin plates.

Young trees: smooth.

COLORDark gray on older trunks, light gray on young trees

Gray on older trunks, light gray on young trees

Dark gray on older trunks, gray on young trees

L E A V E S

LOBES/SHAPE3–5 lobes. sides of terminal lobeconverge, notches between lobes

V-shaped

3–5 lobes, sinuous, sides of terminal lobes flare outward,

notches between lobes rounded

5 lobes, rarely 3; lobes long andnarrow like fingers on a hand

MARGIN Irregularly doubly toothed Sparsely toothed Irregularly and sharply toothed

SURFACE Under-surface slightly white Under-surface pale green Under-surface silvery white

F L O W E R

APPEARANCEScarlet or yellow-red, appears

before the leavesGreenish-yellow, appears with

the leavesGreenish-yellow or pinkish,

appears long before the leaves

B U D S

LENGTH Terminal bud—1⁄8 inch Terminal bud—1⁄4 inch Terminal bud—1⁄8 inch

SHAPEBlunt-pointed, as long

as broadSharp-pointed, many

scales showingBlunt-pointed, slightly ridged

COLOR Dark red Purplish-brown to gray Bright red above, green below

F R U I T

SHAPE Paired, slightly divergent Paired and slightly divergentPaired, but with

one usually abortive

SEED BODY Oval in outline Round Football-shaped

WING Reddish; 3⁄4 inch long 1 inch longStrongly divergent,

2 inches long and hooked

70 M A P L E S

MA

PL

EM * The Important Distinctions

71M A P L E S

Striped MapleAcer pensylvanicum

Mountain MapleAcer spicatum

Norway MapleAcer platanoides

B A R K

TEXTUREMarked with whitish stripesrunning lengthwise on trunk

Smooth when young; shallowlyfurrowed when older

Smooth when young; regularlyfurrowed on older trees

COLOR Reddish-brown or dark green Reddish-brown to grayGray when young,

gray-brown on older trees

L E A V E S

LOBES/SHAPE3 lobes, shaped;

like a duck’s foot, thinUsually 3 lobes, sometimes 5

5–7 lobes, blade wider thantall, stems exude a milky sap

when broken

MARGIN Edges finely and sharply-toothed Coarsely-toothed Sparsely toothed

SURFACEUnder-surface pale green;

pubescent Prominently sunken veins on

the upper surfaceVery dark green; some cultivars

red or deep purple

F L O W E R

APPEARANCEBright yellow, appears after

leaves are full grownYellow-green in long clusters

after the leaves are full grownYellow-green, appear before

the leaves

B U D S

LENGTH Terminal bud—1⁄2 inch Terminal bud—1⁄4 inch >1⁄4 inch

SHAPEDistinctly stalked with

2 scales showingSlender and pointed,

slightly stalkedTurban-shaped, blunt-pointed,

large scales

COLOR Bright red Green to red Green to purple

F R U I T

SHAPE Paired and moderately divergentPaired, slightly divergent,

ascending clustersPaired, flattened

SEED BODYLarge smooth depression in

seed bodyWrinkled depression on

seed bodyFlattened

WING Reddish-brown; 3⁄4 inch long Slightly divergent; 1⁄2 inch longStrongly divergent, leathery;

2 inches long

MA

PL

E

*Key does not include boxelder. Boxelder (page 84–85) is the only maple in Maine with compound leaves.

72 R E D M A P L E

R M Acer rubrum L.

Red maple—also known as soft,white or swamp maple—occurs

throughout the state. A rapid growerand the most abundant of the maples,it is typically found in swamps andpoorly drained sites, but also occurselsewhere. The red maple is a medium-sized, slender tree that becomes 50–60feet high, and 1–2 feet in diameter.The branches are upright, forming asomewhat narrow head. Usually thetrunk is not divided.

The bark on young trees is smoothand light gray. On old trunks, it is darkgray, ridged and broken into plate-like scales.

73R E D M A P L E

The leaves are opposite, 3–5 inch-es long, with 3–5 lobes and marginsthat are irregularly double-toothed.The upper surface is light green; lowersurface is white. The sides of the termi-nal lobe converge toward the tip; andthe notches between lobes are V-shaped. In fall, the leaves turn scarletand orange.

The flowers are produced in clus-ters on stalks before leaf buds open.Males are yellowish-red while femalesare bright scarlet. The red maple is oneof the first trees to flower in spring.

M A I N E R E G I S T E R O F B I G T R E E S 2 0 0 8

Red Maple Circumference: 183'' Height: 69'Crown Spread: 67' Location: Richmond

Red maples produce bright red flowers followed by abundant seeds in the springtime.

The fruit is winged, ripens inspring or early summer, and germi-nates as soon as it falls. Wings are onlyslightly divergent, about ¾ inch long.The seed body lacks a depression.

The twigs are straight, stiff, do nothave a rank odor when broken, and arered on both surfaces. Buds are red andoften clustered.

The wood is close-grained, heavy,moderately strong, easily worked butnot durable, although it will take agood polish. It is used mainly for pulpand firewood, but also for pallets, fur-niture stock, canoe paddles and turneryproducts. As sugar maple becomesmore expensive, more mills are usingred maple. It is also commonly used forlandscape plantings.

MA

PL

E

74

Sugar, rock or hard maple is foundabundantly throughout the state

on moist, rocky slopes, but grows beston moist, upland soils. In the forest, itgrows to 60–70 feet and a diameter of20–30 inches. The top is short andspreading. In the open, the branchesbegin 8–10 feet up, forming an egg-shaped head when the tree is young anda broad, rounded top when older. Itmakes an attractive street or ornamen-tal tree, but it is sensitive to road salt.Maple sugar and syrup are made largelyfrom the sap of this tree, although sugaris present in the sap of all maples.

S M Acer saccharum Marsh.

Historically, sugar maple was used to make parts for sleighs, sleds,pungs (low, one-horse box sleighs) and buggy shafts.

S U G A R M A P L E

S U G A R M A P L E 75

Bark on young trees and largebranches is smooth or slightly fissuredand pale. Some trees have oval light-colored blotches on the bark. Oldertrees are deeply furrowed and light to darker gray. Leaves are opposite,with 3–5 lobes, sparingly-toothed, 3–5inches long, dark green above, palegreen below. Sides of the terminal lobeare parallel or divergent; and notchesbetween lobes are u-shaped. In autumn,leaves turn various shades of red, scar-let, orange or yellow.

Flowers are greenish-yellow, pen-dulous, appear on long, slender, hairystalks and in clusters, with the leaves.The fruit is paired, round with wingsthat are about 1 inch long and slightlydivergent. It ripens in the fall. Thetwigs are brown with sharp-pointedbrown buds.

The wood is heavy, close-grained,strong and hard. It is used for furniture,flooring, tool handles, veneer, railroadties, novelties, dowels, woodenware,canoe paddles, firewood and pulp.“Birds-eye” and curly-patterned mapleis in high demand in the furniture andveneer industry. Historically, sugarmaple was used to make parts forsleighs, sleds, pungs (low, one-horsebox sleighs) and buggy shafts.

Sugar maple buds are sharp-pointed and have scales thathave a dark margin.

M A I N E R E G I S T E R O FB I G T R E E S 2 0 0 8

Sugar MapleCircumference: 213''

Height: 80' Crown Spread: 64'Location: Palermo

MA

PL

E

76 S I L V E R M A P L E

S M Acer saccharinum L.

Abundant in some localities, silvermaple is a common tree, found

throughout the state except along thecoast. It grows largely on sandy banksalong streams, usually attaining aheight of 60–80 feet and a diameter of2–3 feet. The trunk normally separatesinto 3 or 4 upright secondary stems,devoid of branches for some distance.The branches are long and slender,often pendulous.

The bark on young trees issmooth, gray, slightly tinged with red.On old trees, it is reddish-brown, fur-rowed, and separated into large thinscales that are loose at the bottom.Twigsare chestnut brown and shiny.

The leaves are opposite, deeplyfive-lobed; and the edges are irregularand sharply toothed. The upper surfaceis pale green, the lower, silvery white.They turn a pale yellow in fall.

In Maine, silver maple is mostcommon along major rivers.

77S I L V E R M A P L E

The flowers are on very shortstalks and in clusters. They are green-ish-yellow or sometimes pinkish, open-ing early, long before the leaves appear.

The fruit is paired, winged andripens in spring. Frequently, one of thepair does not fully develop. The twigsare curved upward at the tip, orange orred-brown above and green below,slender, with a bitter taste and a rankodor when broken.

The wood is softer than that of the hard maple, close-grained, notdurable and easily worked. It is used toa limited extent for pulp.

Silver maple has large globe-shaped flowerbuds and smaller vegetative buds.

M A I N E R E G I S T E R O F B I G T R E E S 2 0 0 8Silver Maple Circumference: 316'' Height: 89'

Crown Spread: 75' Location: Leeds

MA

PL

E

78 S T R I P E D M A P L E

S M Acer pensylvanicum L.

Striped maple or moosewood iscommon throughout the state. It

is a shade-loving tree that is foundgrowing with other hardwoods, oroccasionally with conifers, on rich,moist soils or rocky slopes. Of littlevalue except for its beauty, it rarelyexceeds a height of 25 feet and a diam-eter of 8 inches. The branches are slen-der and upright, and the top narrowand often short.

The bark on the trunk is reddish-brown or dark green, and marked by whitish lines running lengthwise,which turn brown after a time. Theleaves are three-lobed toward the apex,resembling a goose foot, opposite, fine-ly toothed, pale green, 5–6 inches longand about as broad. In fall they turnlight yellow.The striped maple is a shade-

loving tree that is usually foundgrowing with other hardwoods.

79S T R I P E D M A P L E

The flowers are bright yellow inslender drooping racemes that openthe end of May or early June, when theleaves are fully grown. The fruit ispaired, with wings moderately diver-gent, fully grown in late summer. It hasa smooth, oval depression in the seedbody. The twigs are smooth, reddish orgreenish; the buds are valve-like, stout,stalked and without hairs.

The wood is close-grained, lightand soft. During spring when the cam-bium layer is active, it is easy to make awhistle from the smaller branch sections.

The white and green-striped bark of thestriped maple distinguishes it from any othernative tree.

M A I N E R E G I S T E R O F B I G T R E E S 2 0 0 8Striped Maple*

Circumference: 30"/31" Height: 45'/50' Crown Spread: 21'/20'

Location: Harpswell /Monhegan Island *Tie

MA

PL

E

80 M O U N T A I N M A P L E

M M Acer spicatum Lam.

Mountain maple occurs through-out Maine and is especially

common in the northern part of thestate. It grows as a small bushy tree, sel-dom over 30 feet in height. At times,the tree forms fairly dense thickets, dueto its habit of growing in clumps. Itgrows best in a wet habitat or on damp,northern slopes. The slender twigsgrow in a somewhat upright position.

The mountain maple growsas a small bushy tree, seldomover 30 feet in height.

81M O U N T A I N M A P L E

The bark is reddish-brown togray, thin and somewhat furrowed.

The leaves are opposite, three-lobed, shiny above, somewhat hairybelow. They have rather coarse teethand prominently sunken veins on theupper surface.

The flowers appear in June inlong, hairy, yellow-green clusters afterthe leaves are full grown.

The fruit is paired, with wings

slightly divergent, and occurs inascending clusters. It has a wrinkleddepression on the seed body and ripensin early fall.

The twigs are hairy, green, red orreddish-brown, not striped; and thepith is brown. The buds are hairy,valve-like, green, and only slightlystalked, slender and pointed.

The wood is close-grained, soft,light and not used commercially.

Facing page, far left: Mountain maple leaveshave deeply impressed veins on the upper surface.

MA

PL

E

82 N O R W A Y M A P L E

N M Acer platanoides L.

Norway maple is not native toMaine. Because of its aggressivenature, it is considered to bea serious potential threat toour native flora and furtherplanting of it is discouraged.

Native to continental Europe,Norway maple thrives in a wide

variety of conditions, grows rapidly andcasts a deep shade. Because of its aes-thetic appeal and ease of propagation,it has been planted across Maine as astreet and shade tree. It has escapedinto the wild around many of our citiesand towns, particularly in the southernhalf of the state. Because of its aggres-sive nature, Norway maple is consid-ered to be a serious potential threat toour native flora and further planting ofit is discouraged.

The bark of young trees is grayand smooth. Bark of older trees is gray-brown to almost black, and broken intolong, interlacing vertical furrows.

Norway maple drawing by Anna Anisko, used with thepermission of the Pennsylvania Flora Project, MorrisArboretum of the University of Pennsylvania.

83N O R W A Y M A P L E

The leaves are opposite, with 5–7lobes, and very dark green. The leafblade is usually broader than it is long.Early in summer, the petiole will exudea white milky sap when broken. Thischaracteristic is not shared by any ofour native maples.

The flowers are bright yellow-greenand appear in spring before the leaves.

The fruits are paired and diverge ata wide angle from each other. Each fruithas a leathery wing attached. The fruitand wing are about 2 inches long, flat-tened, light brown and mature in the fall.

The twigs are stout and brownish.The buds are large and green to purplewith large bud scales.

The wood is occasionally used forfirewood.

M A I N E R E G I S T E R O F B I G T R E E S 2 0 0 8Norway Maple Circumference: 166'' Height: 70' Crown Spread: 86' Location: South Berwick

Norway maple fruithas a flattened seedbody and a leathery,2 inch wing.

MA

PL

E

84 B O X E L D E R

Boxelder, or ashleaf maple, isapparently not native to Maine,

but has been planted as an ornamentaltree throughout the state and hasescaped in localized areas near habita-tion. It was introduced along the St.John River in Aroostook County. Itreaches a maximum height of 50 feetand diameter of about 2 feet in Maine.It is a short-lived, fast-growing, brittletree, prone to wind and ice damage. Itcan become invasive.

B Acer negundo L.

Boxelder is a short-lived,fast-growing, brittle tree,prone to wind and ice damage.It can become invasive.

BO

XE

LD

ER

85B O X E L D E R

The bark is light gray and smoothon young stems, becoming roughenedand shallow-fissured on older trees.

The leaves are opposite, compound,usually 3–7 leaflets per leaf, rarely nine.The leaflets vary greatly in shape, oftenlobed and unlobed leaflets are found onthe same leaf. Leaflets are occasionallydivided into individual blades.

The flowers open just before theleaves in the spring and are yellow-green. They have no petals.

M A I N E R E G I S T E R O FB I G T R E E S 2 0 0 8

BoxelderCircumference: 115''

Height: 85' Crown Spread: 66'Location: Wilton

Boxelder twigs arepurple and coveredwith a whitishwaxy bloom.

MA

PL

E

The fruit attains mature size insummer, ripening in autumn. It con-sists of a double-winged pair of seeds.Wings are only slightly divergent; andthe seed body is wrinkled, three timeslonger than broad.

The twigs are smooth, ratherstout, green or maroon, and coveredwith a white, chalky bloom. The barkyields a pungent odor when bruised.

The wood is light, soft, creamywhite, often tinged with green, weakand close-grained. Occasionally it isused for pulp.