| Sweetest
Tree in the Forest |
| Location: |
| The Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum), sometimes called
Hard Maple or Rock Maple, is one of the largest and more important of
the hardwood trees. The wood of these timber trees is used for
furniture, musical instruments and flooring. It is also highly
prized for its use in making maple syrup. Many other maples can
be used, but the Sugar Maple is regarded as the sweetest and the best! This tree is also used for decoration in the landscape! The Sugar Maples provide excellent shade as well as beautiful Autumn coloring when their leaves change from green to shades of bright yellow, orange, and red. These trees produce few flowers until they are at least 22 years old, then they tend to flower heavily. The yellow flowers on long stalks appear early in the Spring and are pollinated by the wind. The fruits of the tree are called double samaras and when they turn yellowish green, they are ripe. A samara is shaped like a horseshoe with wings! When released from the tree they spin to the ground like a helicopter. In a nice breeze they may travel up to 330 feet from the parent tree. This species is fast-growing and produces nice shade cover. This makes it a popular street and lawn tree. However, the Sugar Maple is not tolerant of pollution and doesn’t grow well in compacted soil. These qualities have led to a decline of maple trees planted along city streets. The Sugar Maple is very abundant in our forests and is not endangered. These big, beautiful trees actually cover almost 31 million acres of land across the United States! -- Miranda Marcano
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