Red Maple

Red Maple

Acer rubrum

Aceraceae (Maple Family)

▲ mature tree in summer

▲ ▼ fall colors

▲ ▼ flowers

▲ ▼ leaves

▲ moderate damage after severe ice storm in Springfield, MO in 2007

Location on campus: in lawn on southeast side of Craig Hall, plus many other locations

Acer rubrum: Red Maple

Leaves deciduous, simple, opposite, palmately 3-5 lobed; dark green and glossy above, glaucous underneath; 2-5" long and wide
Leaves often have bright red, orange or yellow (or mixture) for fall color--
One of best trees for fall color
Fall color will vary with planting location, age and stress level of tree, regardless of cultivar color tendencies
Many cultivars selected based on fall color--is only species with so many cultivars just based on fall color
- Cultivars may be grafted, rooted cuttings or tissue cultured
- Best to avoid grafted plants, as graft incompatibilities later on will shorten what should be a moderately long life for tree
- Seedling trees may also have great color--select from nurseries in fall to get color desired (with understanding that new planting location may alter color somewhat)
  - Generally, if has yellow color, will not be red
  - Red and orange colors may be more or less pronounced at planting site
Stems green to reddish-brown when young, gray-brown when older--no bad odor if crushed
Bark is smooth and light gray when young, dark-gray and scaly with age
Grows 40-60 feet tall with upright oval crown
Prefers full sun to part-shade; generally prefers moist, well-drained soils, but very soil adaptable; are many natural ecotypes for almost every soil situation (dry, compacted, wet, clay, rocky, fertile, infertile); fast growth rate
Native to Missouri; most widely planted tree species in eastern U.S.
Is one of the “soft maples," along with silver maple (based on wood strength)
Similar to Acer saccharinum (Silver Maple) - except Silver Maple leaves are almost always 5-7 lobed, while Red Maple leaves often predominantly three-lobed, with some clones showing five-lobed leaves
Acer x freemanii: Freeman Maple, Autumn Blaze maple
- A hybrid between red maple and silver maple
- Has fast growth rate, but slightly harder wood than silver maple
- Leaf appearance is more deeply lobed than red maple, and not as deeply lobed as silver maple
- Has brilliant red-orange fall color (‘Autumn Blaze’ cultivar) that is fairly uniform at various sites