Ohio Trees

Bulletin 700-00

Acer – Maple

Maples are deciduous trees with winter buds bearing several overlapping scales or two uniform, valvate scales. Leaves are opposite and lobed, toothed, or pinnately compound. Flowers are bisexual or have unisexual flowers on the same or different plants. Fruit is a schizocarp that breaks into a two-winged, flattened samara.

Key to Acer Species

Description of Species

Hedge (English) Maple–Acer campestre

Hedge maple is an ornamental tree introduced from Europe and Asia. The tree is medium-sized and reaches heights of 35—50 feet. The tree is often as broad as it is tall with a broad-headed crown and spreading branches.

Branches and twigs are slender and often covered with corky layers of bark. Buds are smaller than Norway maple and more rounded. Margins of the bud scales often have white hairs. Twigs are a rich brown.

Hedge (English) Maple

Opposite leaves are three- to five- lobed and are 2—4 inches (5—10 cm) long and equally wide. Margins of the lobes are entire and rounded at the tips. Foliage is dark green above and hairy beneath. Petioles of the leaves and young twigs have milky sap. Stipules are absent.

	Boxelder (Ash-Leaf Maple)

Flowers are yellow-green and bloom in May. Fruits have horizontally spreading wings that mature in August or September. Fall foliage is a poor yellow.

Boxelder (Ash-Leaf Maple)–Acer negundo

The boxelder is a rapid-growing tree when young. It is found throughout the state on lowlands and in rich soils. It is a tree of medium size, rarely exceeding 24 inches in diameter, and 60—70 feet in height. It has been planted for shade because of its rapid growth. Boxelder's disease sensitivity ensures that it is not long-lived. It is a prolific seed producer, but seedlings are destroyed by grazing and cultivating.

The opposite leaves are odd-pinnate with three to five (rarely seven) leaflets. Foliage is smooth, lustrous, and green with coarsely serrate leaf margins. The leaflets are 2—4 inches (5—10 cm) long by 1—2 inches (21/2—5 cm) wide, making the whole leaf 5—8 inches (13—20 cm) in length. This is the only native maple with pinnately compound leaves.

Buds are white and pubescent. Side buds are hidden. Twigs are often glaucous and encircled by the stipular scar. The bark on young branches is smooth and green to purple in color. On older trees it is thin, grayish to light brown, and deeply divided.

Flowers are yellowish-green and emerge before the foliage in March or April. Fruit matures in September in pendant racemes. The seed is a samara, or winged key, similar to that of a sugar maple, only larger. It ripens in late summer or early fall. The wood is soft, light, weak, close-grained, and decays readily in contact with moisture. It is used occasionally for fuel and pulpwood.

Striped Maple (Moosewood)–Acer pensylvanicum

The striped maple is a small tree similar to the mountain maple but is usually larger in height and trunk diameter. It is an attractive small tree in autumn with orange and scarlet leaves, and in the winter the light green stripes stand out conspicuously. This tree is native to Ohio, but is now very rare and reported as native only in Ashtabula County.

Opposite leaves are broad and roundish with three lobes near the point. Leaves are 43/4—71/4 inches (12—181/2 cm) long and bright green in color. Leaf margins are regularly toothed.

Winter buds have two outer, valvate scales. Twigs are green and glabrous. Bark on larger branches is smooth, green, and has characteristic stripes with light green or white lines.

Flowers are yellow in pendulous clusters and bloom in May or June. Fruit has spreading wings and matures in September. Fall foliage color is yellow to scarlet and showy.

Norway Maple–Acer plantanoids

The Norway maple was one of the most popular street trees in the United States in the ‘60s and ‘70s. There are very few Ohio towns and cities in which this tree is not found. It originated in Europe where it is native from Norway to Switzerland. It is hardy, retains its leaves longer than the native maples, and endures the smoke, dust, and drought of the city, though it is susceptible to verticillium wilt and girdling roots.

Norway Maple

The opposite leaves resemble those of the sugar maple but are deeper green in color and firmer in texture. Leaves have five-pointed lobes and are 4—7 inches (10—18 cm) wide and not quite as long. One characteristic by which it can always be distinguished is the presence of milky sap in the leaf stalks. If pressed or twisted, the leaf stalks always yield a few drops of milky sap. Foliage color is bright green above and shiny beneath, except for the horticultural color variants that include wine, golden, and variegated forms. Fall foliage color is yellow for the green-foliaged forms.

Buds are large (1/4 inch [6 mm]) and red or greenish-red with two to three pairs of bud scales; they are a sure means of identification in the winter. Buds are rounded rather than acute-tipped.

In early spring, the yellow to chartruse flowers are arranged in 3-inch (71/2 cm) diameter clusters along the twigs. Flowers are borne in April or May. This maple has the most attractive flowers of all maples. Flowers are showy since they bloom before the foliage emerges. Fruit has horizontally spreading wings that mature in September or October.

Several different horticultural selections are marketed for characteristics such as form and leaf color. Among the most prominent of these cultivars is ‘Crimson King,' which is a Norway maple with purple summer foliage. ‘Columnare' is a plant with a narrow, upright form when it is young, although it begins to broaden with age. ‘Schwedleri' has bronzy spring foliage color and deep green summer foliage. It is longer lived than most Norway maples.

Planetree (Sycamore) Maple–Acer pseudoplatanus

A medium-sized tree usually 40—50 feet in height, the planetree is occasionally used for shade and ornamental purposes. This tree was introduced from northern Europe and has difficulty with the warm summers in Ohio. A number of cultivars have been introduced and are marketed for foliage color. This tree is inferior to the Norway maple and generally not suited for Ohio conditions except within a few miles of Lake Erie.

Winter buds have imbricate (overlapping) scales. Buds are large (1/4 inch [6 mm]) and green with few scales. Bark on twigs and branches is smooth.

	Planetree (Sycamore) Maple

Foliage is greenish-white beneath and dark green, rough, and glabrous above. Leaves are sycamore-like, five-lobed, and 31/4—61/2 inches (81/2—161/2 cm) long and wide. Lobes have coarsely toothed margins. Leaves are dark green above and smooth or slightly hairy on veins. Fall foliage color is greenish-yellow and not showy.

The perfect flowers are yellowish-green and hang on stalks 4—5 inches (10—13 cm) long. Flowers emerge in May after the foliage is out. Fruit has wings spreading at acute or right angles. Fruit hangs in showy chains and matures in August or September. Fruit frequently persists over the winter. The samara are smaller than the Norway maple.

Red Maple–Acer rubrum

The red maple is widely distributed through the state, although it is much more common in the acidic soil regions of Ohio. It is usually a medium-sized tree with a moderate growth rate.

The bark is smooth and light gray on young- and intermediate-aged stems, while mature bark is dark gray and rough. Crushed twigs do not emit a rank odor as does the silver maple. Twigs are reddish and have rounded, oblong, vegetative buds. Floral buds are globose and conspicuous, since they are borne in clusters. Lower branches tend to sweep upward.

	Red Maple

Leaves have three to five lobes and are 21/2—4 inches (6—10 cm) long. The leaves have saw-toothed margins, and the lobes are separated by sharp and angular sinuses that extend less than half way to the midrib. The upper surface of the mature leaves is medium green, and the lower surface is white, partly covered with pale down. In autumn, the leaves predominately turn brilliant shades of red but also turn orange and yellow.

The dioecious, red flowers are borne in dense clusters and appear in March or April before the leaves; the buds turn a deep red sometime before they open. Male trees can be planted if you do not want fruit. Fruits have wings spreading at narrow angles and ripen in May or June. The fruit consists of pairs of winged seeds, or keys, 1/2—1 inch (13—25 mm) in length on long, drooping stems. Fruit color ranges from red to green, becoming tan when mature.

The wood is commercially known as soft maple and is heavy, close-grained, rather weak, and light brown color. It is used in the manufacture of furniture, turnery, woodenware, and fuel. Red maple is inferior to black and sugar maple for syrup.

The species makes an excellent suburban or rural landscape tree in acid soil regions of the state. Numerous cultivars are available and are marketed based on fall color and habit. This tree has an acid soil requirement and is intolerant of wounding. With red maples, manganese deficiencies are common in neutral to alkaline soils and are difficult to correct due to the limestone parent material of many Ohio soils.

Silver Maple–Acer saccharinum (dasycarpum)

The silver or soft maple is most common on moist land and along streams. It attains heights of 100 feet or more and diameters over 3 feet. It usually has a short trunk which divides into a number of large, ascending limbs. These again subdivide, and small branches droop but turn upward at the tips. The silver maple grows rapidly and has widely been planted as a shade tree. The urban-tolerance of the silver maple makes it the longest-lived of the maples in urban settings. It has been over-planted and should not be planted where maples constitute more than 20 percent of the tree canopy.

	Silver Maple

The simple leaves are opposite on the stem, 31/4—51/2 inches (8—14 cm) across, bright green above, and silvery-white beneath. Leaves are lobed more than half way to midrib. Sinuses are U-shaped and the leaves are deeply five-lobed. The leaf margin is strongly toothed. Fall foliage color is chartruse to yellow and less showy than the red maple.

The buds are rounded, red or reddish-brown, blunt-pointed, and generally like those of the red maple. Clusters of globose floral buds are also present on silver maple. On the young twigs the bark is smooth and varies in color from red to a yellowish-gray. Crushed twigs emit a rank odor. The bark on the old stems is dark gray and broken into long flakes.

The flowers appear in February or March, before the leaves, in dense clusters and are of a greenish-yellow or reddish-yellow color. This may be the first native tree to flower, although the flowers are not showy. Fruits have divergent and curved wings that mature in May or June. It consists of a pair of winged seeds, or key, with wings 1—2 inches (21/2—5 cm) long on slender, flexible stems about an inch (25 mm) long. Fruit can be a litter problem, since they are borne in great numbers. There are no male trees as this tree can have some perfect flowers.

The wood is soft, weak, even textured, rather brittle, easily worked, and decays readily when exposed to the elements. It is used for furniture, fuel, and pulpwood. Like the red maple, it is sold as soft maple and is inferior to the sugar and black maples as a source of maple syrup.

Sugar Maple–Acer saccharum

The sugar maple is generally distributed in Ohio, but is most abundant in the northeastern area. In Ohio, it occurs in pure stands associated with beech, producing the famous sugar bushes of this area. In Geauga County it reaches its best development. The tree attains a height of more than 100 feet and a diameter of 3 feet or more. It is generally a slow-growing tree. In the open, sugar maples have a symmetrical crown. It is extensively planted as a shade tree, although it is urban intolerant and should not be used in tree lawns.

The simple, opposite leaves are three- to five-lobed and 31/4—51/2 inches (81/2—14 cm) long and wide. The sinuses (division between the lobes) are rounded. The leaves are medium green on the upper surface and lighter green beneath. In the autumn, leaves turn to brilliant shades of dark green, scarlet, orange, and yellow.

Sugar Maple

The bark on young trees is light gray to brown and rather smooth, but as the tree grows older, it breaks up into long irregular plates which vary from light gray to almost black. The twigs are smooth (glabrous) and reddish-brown in color. The winter buds are smaller than Norway maple and sharp-pointed with six to 10 pairs of scales.

The flowers are yellowish-green, on long stalks, and appear with the leaves in April. Male and female flower clusters appear on the same tree. The fruit, which ripens in September, consists of a two-winged key. The two wings are nearly parallel, about 1 inch (25 mm) in length, and each half contains a seed. The seed is easily carried by the wind.

The wood is hard, heavy, strong, close-grained, and light brown in color. It is known commercially as hard maple and is used in the manufacture of flooring, furniture, shoe lasts, and a great variety of novelties. This is the principal tree to be tapped for maple syrup.

	Black Maple

Black Maple–Acer saccharum nigrum

Black maple is now acknowledged to be an ecotype of the sugar maple. It is distributed generally over the state and more commonly found along streams and broad flood plains, not on the uplands where sugar maple is more common. It is more abundant in the southern part of the state.

The mature bark of the older specimens is deeply furrowed and much darker than the common sugar maple. Lenticels on twigs are large and warty. Year-old twigs are light brown with stipular scars that nearly encircle the twig.

The simple, opposite leaves are a rich, deep green color above with entire wavy margins. Leaves are usually three-lobed but are occasionally five-lobed and are 4—51/2 inches (10—14 cm) long and wide. Foliage is dull green above and pale, yellowish-green below. When mature, the leaves have a drooping appearance. The stem of the leaf is enlarged at the base and surrounded by a winged appendage called a stipule. Fall foliage color is yellow.

Flowers are yellowish-green and bloom in April prior to the emergence of the foliage. Fruit is a samara with wings that are nearly parallel. The fruit matures in September.

Commercially, the lumber has the same uses as the sugar maple, and the tree is also a source of maple syrup. This tree may be better adapted as a landscape specimen than sugar maple in Ohio.

Mountain Maple–Acer spicatum

A small tree or shrub not over 30 feet in height, the mountain maple is the second of the striped maples. These are forest-understory trees more commonly found in cooler areas. A rare native tree usually confined to the lake area of the northeastern part of Ohio and the cool coves of eastern Ohio, the mountain maple is often associated with the hemlock. Mountain maple is also found in Clifton Gorge in Greene County.

Leaves are three-lobed, rarely five-lobed, 21/2—41/4 inches (6—12 cm) long, yellowish-green above, and hairy beneath. Leaf margins have coarse, irregular teeth, and usually have fine hairs beneath with smooth surface above. Foliage is light to yellowish-green in color.

Winter buds have two outer, valvate scales. Twigs, as well as the petioles and midribs of leaves, are pubescent. The color of young bark is green and does not have stripes.

Flowers are greenish-yellow and open in June. Fruit has wings that diverge at right angles and mature in September. Fall color ranges from yellow to scarlet and can be quite showy.

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