![]() ![]() For best sap flow, this tree should be planted in areas where nights are below freezing and and days are higher than 5 degrees Celsius (~41 degrees Fahrenheit), which makes syrup production in North Carolina problematic. A single tree can produce 5-60 liters of sap per year. 35-40 liters of sap make 1 liter of syrup. The sap is collected in the late winter and is concentrated by either boiling it or by reverse osmosis. It is the only tree commercially used today for syrup production. In spring drooping racemes of yellow flowers are followed by winged samaras that are clustered on long reddish stalks in summer. Northern sugar maple may reach 50 to 120 feet tall with a dense, spreading crown that provides heavy shade and grows at a slow to medium rate, although it may grow faster in open areas. The leaves have 5 lobes and coarsely toothed edges and turn brilliant shades of red, orange or yellow in the fall. floridanum) do well in the Piedmont and Coastal regions. nigrum) do well in the mountains, and Florida maple (subsp. leucoderme) do well in the Piedmont, black maple (subsp. However, three subspecies of Acer saccharum do grow well in North Carolina: chalk maple (supsp. It can be sporadically found throughout the Piedmont as it was introduced to the region as an ornamental plant. It is also commonly found in dry forests and woodlands, less typically extending to high elevation northern hardwood forests with acidic situations. Primarily found in the cooler, higher mountains of North Carolina, it prefers to grow in cove forests and other rich forests, especially over areas rich in magnesium and iron (mafic) and lime (calcareous). Northern sugar maple is a deciduous tree in the Sapindaceae (soapberry) family that is native to Eastern and central North America. And in autumn, when Norway maple leaves do finally turn color, it’s just yellow - pretty to some people, but sickly looking to me.Phonetic Spelling AY-ser sa-KAR-um Description During the growing season, Norway maple’s leaves are dark green, much darker than those of sugar maple. The easiest way to tell these two maples apart is by leaf color. If you see pale hairs there, you’ve got a sugar maple leaf in hand. Get out a magnifying glass, flip a leaf over, and look along the major veins on the underside of a leaf. Also, Norway maple leaves have more lobes, typically five to seven, compared with the sugar maple’s three to five, and the indented portion between the lobes of sugar maple will be more rounded. If you have a known sugar or Norway maple leaf for comparison, you’ll also see that the leaves of a Norway maple are broader compared to their height than those of sugar maple. If the sap is white, it’s a Norway maple sugar maples have clear sap. Start by cutting the leaf stalk and squeezing out some sap. Maples that are too young to flower are harder to tell apart, but you can do it by looking at the leaves. The two wings of a Norway maple seed spread at almost a 180 degree angle from each other, while those of a sugar maple hang down together at a much narrower angle. The bark of Norway maple has regular grooves while an older sugar maple’s bark has thick, irregular plates.įor a less subtle identifier, look at a maple’s fruit, the “airplane” familiar to everyone. One way to tell them apart is by their barks. Larger trees that have gained foothold in forests and fields can be done in by merely cutting away a ring of bark from the trunk at whatever height is most convenient.īefore killing any Norway maple, it is necessary to positively identify it unfortunately, the maple that comes closest in appearance is our native, slower growing sugar maple. There are also varieties with yellow-splashed leaves (Leopoldi) or narrow, upright growth habit (Columnare), or red leaves and narrow, upright growth habit (Crimson Sentry).įecundity and winged seeds have made Norway maple too much of a good thing, so I’m yanking out any small plants that I come upon. You may not have heard of Crimson King, a variety with deep red leaves, but you’ve surely seen it. Over the years, this tree became popular for lining streets and gracing yards, and hordes of varieties were named. The plant was brought over from Europe by the “father of American botany,” John Bartram, who offered it in his nursery catalog in 1726. With its ability to grow fast and transplant easily, Norway maple’s popularity once seemed secure. These wildflowers rely on early season sunlight to build up enough reserves to carry them through the winter and flower the following spring. Norway maple is an invasive plant that has escaped from cultivation to displace sugar maple and shade to death spring wildflowers such as Dutchman’s breeches, dog-tooth violet and mayapple. ![]()
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