Difference between revisions of "Sugar Maple"

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{{Taxobox
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__NOTOC__{{Plantbox
| color = lightgreen
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| name = ''LATINNAME''  <!--- replace LATINNAME with the actual latin name -->
| name = Sugar Maple
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| common_names =    <!--- if multiple, list all, if none, leave blank -->
| status = {{StatusSecure}}
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| growth_habit = ?  <!--- tree, shrub, herbaceous, vine, etc -->
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| high = ?  <!--- 1m (3 ft) -->
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| wide =    <!--- 65cm (25 inches) -->
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| origin = ?  <!--- Mexico, S America, S Europe, garden, etc -->
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| poisonous =    <!--- indicate parts of plants which are known/thought to be poisonous -->
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| lifespan =    <!--- perennial, annual, etc -->
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| exposure = ?  <!--- full sun, part-sun, semi-shade, shade, indoors, bright filtered (you may list more than 1) -->
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| water = ?  <!--- frequent, regular, moderate, drought tolerant, let dry then soak -->
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| features =    <!--- flowers, fragrance, fruit, naturalizes, invasive -->
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| hardiness =    <!--- frost sensitive, hardy, 5°C (40°F), etc -->
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| bloom =    <!--- seasons which the plant blooms, if it is grown for its flowers -->
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| usda_zones = ?  <!--- eg. 8-11 -->
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| sunset_zones =     <!--- eg. 8, 9, 12-24, not available -->
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| color = IndianRed
 
| image = Acer saccharum foliage.jpg
 
| image = Acer saccharum foliage.jpg
| image_width = 240px
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| image_width = 180px    <!--- leave as 240px if horizontal orientation photo, or change to 180px if vertical -->
 
| image_caption = Sugar Maple leaves
 
| image_caption = Sugar Maple leaves
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
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| regnum = Plantae
| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
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| divisio = Magnoliophyta
| classis = [[Dicotyledon|Magnoliopsida]]
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| classis = Magnoliopsida
| ordo = [[Sapindales]]
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| ordo = Sapindales
| familia = [[Aceraceae]]
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| familia = Aceraceae
| genus = ''[[Maple|Acer]]''
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| genus = Acer
| species = '''''A. saccharum'''''
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| species = saccharum
| binomial = ''Acer saccharum''
 
| binomial_authority = [[Humphry Marshall|Marshall]]
 
| range_map = Acer saccharum.PNG
 
| range_map_width = 200px
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Inc|
The '''Sugar Maple''' ''Acer saccharum'' is a prominent [[tree]] in the hardwood forests of eastern [[North America]]. In addition, ''[[Acer barbatum]]'' Michx. (Southern Sugar Maple), ''[[Acer leucoderme]]'' Small, and ''[[Acer nigrum]]'' Michx. are also called Sugar Maple. <ref>[http://www.funet.fi/pub/sci/bio/life/plants/magnoliophyta/magnoliophytina/magnoliopsida/aceraceae/acer/index.html  ''Acer''] </ref> 
 
 
 
This American [[maple]], reaches heights of 15 m (50 feet) to 24 m (80 feet) tall. <ref>[http://www.merrycoz.org/voices/bartlett/AMER13.HTM#s Bartlett, John Russell  ''Dictionary of Americanisms'' (1848)]</ref>.
 
 
 
 
[[Image:SugarMaple.jpg|left|thumb|A farm with a Sugar Maple in the front yard]]
 
[[Image:SugarMaple.jpg|left|thumb|A farm with a Sugar Maple in the front yard]]
The [[leaf|leaves]] are [[deciduous]], 8-15 cm long and equally wide with five palmate lobes. The basal lobes are relatively small, while the upper lobes are larger and deeply notched. In contrast with the angular notching of the [[Silver Maple]], however, the notches tend to be rounded at their interior. The fall color is often spectacular, ranging from bright yellow through orange to fluorescent red-orange. The leaf buds are pointy and brown colored. The recent years growth twigs are green, and turn dark brown.
 
 
The [[flower]]s are in [[corymb]]s of 5-10 together, yellow-green and without petals; flowering occurs in early spring after 30-55 [[growing degree day]]s. The [[fruit]] is a double [[Samara (fruit)|samara]] with two winged [[seed]]s, the seeds are globose, 7-10 mm diameter, the wing 2-3 cm long. The seeds fall from the tree in autumn.
 
 
It is closely related to the [[Black Maple]], which is sometimes included in this species but sometimes separated as ''Acer nigrum''. The western American [[Bigtooth Maple]] (''Acer grandidentatum'') is also treated as a variety or subspecies of Sugar Maple by some botanists.
 
 
The Sugar Maple is also often confused with the [[Norway Maple]], though they are not closely related within the genus. The Sugar Maple is most easily identified by clear sap in the leaf [[Petiole (botany)|petiole]] (the Norway Maple has white sap), brown sharp-tipped buds (the Norway Maple has blunt green or reddish purple buds), and shaggy bark on older trees (the Norway Maple bark has small grooves). Also, the leaf lobes of the Sugar Maple have a more triangular shape, in contrast to the squarish lobes of the Norway Maple.
 
 
=='''Ecology'''==
 
The Sugar Maple is an immensely important species to the ecology of many forests in North America. Pure stands are common, and it is a major component of many forest types.  It often forms associations with the [[American Beech]], forming the beech-maple forest type, common in northern areas. Other associations include Sugar Maple-[[Yellow Birch]] (which is most important beyond the northern limit of beech), Sugar Maple-[[Tilia americana|American Basswood]], Sugar Maple-[[White Ash]] and Sugar Maple-[[Ostrya|Ironwood]]-[[Red Oak]]. Sugar Maples engage in [[hydraulic lift]], drawing water from lower soil layers and exuding that water into upper, drier soil layers.  This not only benefits the tree itself but also many other plants growing around it.<ref>[http://www.springerlink.com/content/n1n685611216p3l0/ Hydraulic lift and its influence on the water content of the rhizosphere: an example from sugar maple, Acer saccharum]</ref>
 
 
 
[[Image:Sugar Maple Acer saccharum Trunk base 3264px.jpg|right|thumb|The bark of the Sugar Maple]]
 
[[Image:Sugar Maple Acer saccharum Trunk base 3264px.jpg|right|thumb|The bark of the Sugar Maple]]
Sugar Maple is among the most [[Shade tolerance|shade tolerant]] of large deciduous trees. Among North Am
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Acer saccharum, Marsh. (A. saccharinum, Wang., not Linn. A. barbatum, Michx.). Sugar or Rock Maple. Fig. 98. Large tree, 120 ft., with gray bark: lvs. 3-5-lobed, cordate, 3-6 in. long, with narrow and deep sinuses; lobes acuminate, sparingly dentate, usually glaucous and glabrous beneath: corymb hairy: fr. with slightly spreading wings, glabrous. E. N. Amer. S.S. 2:90. Em. 558. H.T. 324. Gn. 65, p. 55 (habit). —An excellent street and shade tree of upright, dense growth, turning bright yellow and scarlet in autumn. It does well in almost every soil. Var. Rugelii, Rehd. (A. Rugelii, Pax, A. saccharum var. barbatum, Trel.). Lvs. 3-lobed, generally broader than long, 2-5 in. across, pale green or glaucous beneath, and at length mostly glabrous, coriaceous; lobes nearly entire. Central states. S.S. 2:91 (as var. nigrum). Var. monumentale, Schwerin (A. nigrum var. monumentale, Rehd.). Of upright, columnar habit.{{SCH}}
erican maples its shade tolerance is exceeded only by the [[Striped Maple]], a smaller tree. Like other maples, its shade tolerance is manifested in its ability to germinate and persist under a closed canopy as an understory plant, and respond with rapid growth to the increased light formed by a gap in the canopy.
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}}
 
 
Human influences have contributed to the decline of the Sugar Maple in many regions. Its role as a species of mature forests has led it to be replaced by more opportunistic species in areas where forests are cut over. The Sugar maple also exhibits a greater susceptibility to pollution than other species of maple. [[Acid rain]] and [[soil acidification]] are some of the primary contributing factors to [[maple decline]].   Also, the increased use of salt over the last several decades on streets and roads has decimated the sugar maple's role as a "street-front" tree.  
 
  
In some parts of Eastern North America, particularly near urbanized areas, the Sugar Maple is being displaced by the [[Norway Maple]]. The Norway Maple is also highly shade tolerant, but is considerably more tolerant of urban conditions than the Sugar Maple, making it a natural replacement in those areas heavily disturbed by human activities.
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==Cultivation==
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{{edit-cult}}<!--- Type cultivation info below this line, then delete this entire line -->
  
=='''Conservation'''==
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===Propagation===
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{{edit-prop}}<!--- Type propagation info below this line, then delete this entire line -->
  
[[Image:Acer saccharum NA conservation.PNG|thumb|200px|Conservation status by subnation]]
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===Pests and diseases===
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{{edit-pests}}<!--- Type pest/disease info below this line, then delete this entire line -->
  
The sugar maple is secure in most of its range, but is considered "Vulnerable" in [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], and possibly has been [[Extirpation|extirpated]] from [[North Dakota]].
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==Species==
 
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Cultivars{{wp}}
=='''Cultivation and uses'''==
 
The Sugar Maple is one of the most important [[Trees of Canada|Canadian trees]], being (with [[Black Maple]]) the major source of sap for making [[maple syrup]]; Sugar Maple being regarded as slightly better. Many maples can be used as a sap source for maple syrup, but none of the others are as good as these two.
 
 
 
The [[wood]] is one of the hardest of the maples, and is prized for furniture and flooring. [[Bowling]] alleys and bowling pins are both commonly manufactured from sugar maple. Trees with wavy wood grain, called "[[birdseye maple]]", are especially valued. Maple is also the wood used for basketball courts including the floors used by the NBA, and it is a popular wood for baseball bats, along with [[White Ash|white ash]].
 
 
 
The Sugar Maple is a favorite street and garden tree, because it is easy to propagate and transplant, is fairly fast-growing, and has beautiful fall color; however, its intolerance of pollution and compacted soils common to inner city conditions make it a frequent victim of [[maple decline]]. It also has some of the most dense shade to be found in shade trees. The shade and the shallow, fibrous [[root]]s may interfere with grass growing under the trees. Deep well-drained [[loam]] is the best rooting medium, although Sugar Maple can grow well on sandy soil which does not become excessively dry. Poorly drained areas are unsuitable and the species is especially short-lived on flood-prone clay flats. Its salt tolerance is low and it is very sensitive to [[boron]].
 
[[Image:Sugar Maple Acer saccharum Tree 2448px.jpg|right|thumb]]
 
;Cultivars
 
 
*'Apollo' - columnar.
 
*'Apollo' - columnar.
 
*'Arrowhead' - pyramidal crown.
 
*'Arrowhead' - pyramidal crown.
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*'Unity' - very hardy [[Manitoba]] cultivar.
 
*'Unity' - very hardy [[Manitoba]] cultivar.
  
Sugar Maple is the [[List of U.S. state trees|State Tree]] of [[New York]], [[Vermont]], [[West Virginia]] and [[Wisconsin]].
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==Gallery==
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{{photo-sources}}<!-- remove this line if there are already 3 or more photos in the gallery  -->
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<gallery>
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Image:Upload.png| photo 1
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Image:Upload.png| photo 2
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Image:Upload.png| photo 3
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</gallery>
  
== Footnote ==
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==References==
{{Reflist}}
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*[[Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture]], by L. H. Bailey, MacMillan Co., 1963
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<!--- xxxxx  *Flora: The Gardener's Bible, by Sean Hogan. Global Book Publishing, 2003. ISBN 0881925381  -->
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<!--- xxxxx  *American Horticultural Society: A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants, by Christopher Brickell, Judith D. Zuk. 1996. ISBN 0789419432  -->
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<!--- xxxxx  *Sunset National Garden Book. Sunset Books, Inc., 1997. ISBN 0376038608  -->
  
=='''References'''==
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==External links==
* Horton, J. L., & Hart, S.C. (1998). Hydraulic lift: a potentially important ecosystem process. ''Trends in Ecology and Evolution'' 13 (6): 232-235.
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*{{wplink}}
* Canham, C. D. (1989). Different Respones to Gaps Among Shade-Tollerant Tree Species. ''Ecol
 
ogy'' 70 (3): 548-550. 
 
* Brisson, J., Bergeron, Y., Bouchard, A., & Leduc, A. (1994). Beech-maple dynamics in an old-growth forest in southern Quebec, Canada. ''Ecoscience'' (Sainte-Foy) 1 (1): 40-46.
 
* Duchesne, L., Ouimet, R., & Houle, D. (2002). Basal Area Growth of Sugar Maple in Relation to Acid Deposition, Stand Health, and Soil Nutrients. ''Journal of Environmental Quality'' 31: 1676-1683.
 
*[http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/silvics_manual/volume_2/acer/saccharum.htm Godman, Yawney and Tubbs. Sugar Maple]
 
*[http://www.hcs.ohio-state.edu/hcs/TMI/Plantlist/ac_harum.html Acer saccharum]
 
*[http://www.cas.vanderbilt.edu/bioimages/species/frame/acsa3.htm ''Acer saccharum'' images at bioimages.vanderbilt.edu]
 
  
{{Commonscat|Acer saccharum}}
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{{stub}}
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[[Category:Categorize]]
  
[[Category:Crops originating from the Americas]]
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<!--  in order to add all the proper categories, go to http://www.plants.am/wiki/Plant_Categories and copy/paste the contents of the page here, and then follow the easy instructions!    -->
[[Category:Sapindaceae|Maple, Sugar]]
 
[[Category:Trees of Canada|Maple, Sugar]]
 
[[Category:Crops|Maple, Sugar]]
 
[[Category:Symbols of Vermont]]
 
[[Category:Vermont culture]]
 
[[Category:National symbols of Canada]]
 

Revision as of 21:21, 22 June 2009


Sugar Maple leaves


Plant Characteristics
Origin: ?
Cultivation
Exposure: ?"?" is not in the list (sun, part-sun, shade, unknown) of allowed values for the "Exposure" property.
Water: ?"?" is not in the list (wet, moist, moderate, dry, less when dormant) of allowed values for the "Water" property.
Scientific Names

Aceraceae >

Acer >

saccharum >



Read about Sugar Maple in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture 
A farm with a Sugar Maple in the front yard
The bark of the Sugar Maple

Acer saccharum, Marsh. (A. saccharinum, Wang., not Linn. A. barbatum, Michx.). Sugar or Rock Maple. Fig. 98. Large tree, 120 ft., with gray bark: lvs. 3-5-lobed, cordate, 3-6 in. long, with narrow and deep sinuses; lobes acuminate, sparingly dentate, usually glaucous and glabrous beneath: corymb hairy: fr. with slightly spreading wings, glabrous. E. N. Amer. S.S. 2:90. Em. 558. H.T. 324. Gn. 65, p. 55 (habit). —An excellent street and shade tree of upright, dense growth, turning bright yellow and scarlet in autumn. It does well in almost every soil. Var. Rugelii, Rehd. (A. Rugelii, Pax, A. saccharum var. barbatum, Trel.). Lvs. 3-lobed, generally broader than long, 2-5 in. across, pale green or glaucous beneath, and at length mostly glabrous, coriaceous; lobes nearly entire. Central states. S.S. 2:91 (as var. nigrum). Var. monumentale, Schwerin (A. nigrum var. monumentale, Rehd.). Of upright, columnar habit.CH


The above text is from the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article. Click on "Collapse" in the header to hide this text.


Cultivation

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Propagation

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Pests and diseases

Do you have pest and disease info on this plant? Edit this section!

Species

Cultivarswp

  • 'Apollo' - columnar.
  • 'Arrowhead' - pyramidal crown.
  • 'Astis' (Steeple®) - heat-tolerant; good in southeastern USA. Oval crown.
  • 'Bonfire' - fast-growing.
  • 'Columnare'
  • 'Fall Fiesta' - tough-leaved, colorful in season.
  • 'Green Mountain' - durable foliage resists heat and drought.
  • 'Legacy' - tough, vigorous and popular.
  • 'Monumentale' - columnar.
  • 'Newton Sentry' - very narrow.
  • 'Sweet Shadow' - lacy foliage.
  • 'Temple's Upright' - columnar.
  • 'Unity' - very hardy Manitoba cultivar.

Gallery

If you have a photo of this plant, please upload it! Plus, there may be other photos available for you to add.

References

External links