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Acer platanoides

(European Maple)

Overview

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An old cultivar that is a parent of many of the newer red foliage forms. Grows larger and more rapidly than 'Crimson King'. Foliage emerges maroon, but turns black-green as it matures . Color effect is more subtle than 'Crimson King' and is easier to use in landscapes.

Interesting Facts

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Common Names

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Click on the language to view common names.

Common Names in English:

European Maple, Norway Maple

Common Names in French:

érable Plane

Common Names in German:

Spitzahorn

Common Names in Romanian:

Paltin De Câmp, Paltin De Cîmp

Description

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Family Sapindaceae

Trees or shrubs (or woody vines with tendrils in Cardiospermum and allied genera), rarely herbaceous climbers . Indumentum usually of simple hairs , often glandular on young parts, buds, and inflorescences. Leaves alternate, usually estipulate; leaf blade pinnate or digitate, rarely simple; leaflets alternate to opposite, entire or dentate to serrate. Inflorescence a terminal or axillary thyrse ; bracts and bracteoles small. Flowers unisexual , rarely polygamous or bisexual , actinomorphic or zygomorphic, usually small. Sepals 4 or 5(or 6), equal or unequal, free or connate at base , imbricate or valvate . Petals 4 or 5(or 6), sometimes absent, free, imbricate, usually clawed, often with scales or hair-tufted basal appendages . Disk conspicuous , fleshy , complete or interrupted , lobed or annular , rarely absent. Stamens 5-10(-74), usually 8, rarely numerous , variously inserted but usually within disk, often exserted in male flowers; filaments free, rarely connate; anthers dorsifixed , longitudinally dehiscent , introrse ; staminodes sometimes present in carpellate flowers, but filaments shorter and anthers with a thick wall, indehiscent. Ovary superior, (1-) 3(or 4) -loculed; ovules 1 or 2(or several) per locule, placentation axile , rarely parietal , anatropous , campylotropous, or amphitropous ; style usually apical (terminal), semigynobasic in Allophylus [gynobasic in Deinbollia Schumacher & Thonning]; stigma entire or 2 or 3(or 4) -lobed, usually rudimentary in male flowers. Fruit a loculicidal capsule, berry, or drupe, or consisting of 2 or 3 samaras, often 1-seeded and 1-loculed by abortion . Seeds 1(or 2 or more) per locule; testa black or brown, hard, often with a conspicuous fleshy aril or sarcotesta ; embryo curved , plicate , or twisted, oily and starchy; endosperm usually absent. 2n = 20-36.

One hundred thirty-five genera and ca. 1500 species: widely distributed in tropical and subtropical regions, especially well represented in tropical SE Asia; 21 genera (one endemic) and 52 species (16 endemic, one introduced ) in China.

There is some variation in the circumscription of Sapindaceae in taxonomic treatments, particularly with regard to the inclusion of genera from the closely related, predominately temperate families Aceraceae and Hippocastanaceae. Several studies including Müller and Leenhouts (in Ferguson & Müller, Evolutionary Significance Exine: 407-445. 1976), and more recently those based on molecular data (Stevens, Angiosperm Phylogeny Website, 2001 onward; Harrington et al. , Syst. Bot. 30: 366-382. 2005), supported the recognition of a broadly defined Sapindaceae incorporating Aceraceae and Hippocastanaceae. Harrington et al. (loc. cit. ) proposed four subfamilies or clades, comprising Sapindoideae (including

Koelreuteria and Ungnadia Endlicher), Dodonaeoideae, Hippocastanoideae (including taxa previously referred to Aceraceae and Hippocastanaceae, plus Handeliodendron), and a monotypic "Xanthoceratoideae". Within Hippocastanoideae, Acer Linnaeus and Dipteronia Oliver comprise a monophyletic group and are treated in this Flora as Aceraceae. Similarly, Aesculus Linnaeus, Billia Peyritsch, and the Chinese endemic Handeliodendron Rehder form a monophyletic group and are treated here as Hippocastanaceae. There is some support for "Xanthoceratoideae" being the first lineage to diverge within the broadly defined Sapindaceae assemblage; consequently, Xanthoceras is treated separately from genera in Sapindoideae and Dodonaeoideae in the following account of Sapindaceae s.s. The sequence of genera reflects Müller and Leenhouts (loc. cit.) as modified by recent analyses based on molecular and morphological data, rather than following the order developed by Radlkofer (Sitzungsber. Math.-Phys. Cl. Königl. Bayer. Akad. Wiss. München 20: 105-379. 1890; and in Engler, Pflanzenreich 98a-h(IV . 165) : 1-1539. 1931-1934), which was previously followed in FRPS.

The main economic uses of this family include (1) timber: Amesiodendron chinense, Dimocarpus longan, D. confinis, Litchi chinensis, Pavieasia kwangsiensis, and Pometia pinnata; (2) fruit: Dimocarpus longan, Litchi chinensis, and Nephelium lappaceum; (3) medicine: Dimocarpus longan (arillode ), Litchi chinensis (seeds), and Sapindus saponaria (roots ) ; (4) oil : Amesiodendron chinense, Delavaya toxocarpa, and Xanthoceras sorbifolium. Saponins occur widely in the family, commonly used as a fish poison and for their detergent properties.[1]

Physical Description

Species Acer platanoides

Norway maples grow to about 40-70 feet tall and have large leaves and distinctive bark . The leaves on the Norway maple are very similar to those of the Sugar maple, Acer saccharum. They can be distinguished from sugar maples leaves by the fine hair like bristles at the end of the lobes and the milky sap that is exuded when the petiole is detached. The fruit is a samara that is 3-4 inches long. The two sides of the samara come together at a 180 degree angle ; sugar maple samaras have about a 60 degree angle and resemble a horse shoe . The seed is very flat on Norway maple whereas native maples have thick seeds. The bark on older trees is distinctly furrowed with interlacing ridges , often turning a sooty black, whereas sugar maple has platy bark. Norway maple leaves turn a bright yellow in the fall , after most trees have lost their leaves.

ID Features: Milky sap in petiole and leaf veins. Large, plump green-maroon buds (compare with Acer pseudoplatanus. which are always green). Leaves larger than those of Acer campestre. Leaves broader than those of Acer saccharum.

Habit: Medium to large shade tree . Deciduous. Rounded crown, densely branched.

Flowers: Blooms in April. Numerous small, yellow-green flowers. Showy, especially for early spring . • Bloom Period: March, April, May. • Flower Color: chartreuse, pale green, pale yellow, yellow-green

Seeds: Fruit: Samaras, 1.5" to 2" long. Turn green to tan.

Foliage: Summer foliage: Opposite, 5-lobed leaves, 4" to 7" across. Uniform dark green color. Milky sap visible when petiole is broken . • Fall foliage: Often colors late (end of October). Can be a good, uniform yellow.

Size/Age/Growth

Growth Rate: Grows rapidly when young. • Size: Typically 40' to 60' tall, but can reach 90'.

Landscaping

Landscape Uses: Shade tree for lawns, parks, industrial parks. Needs adequate space to develop. • Liabilities: Creates very dense shade which kills out turf . Grows too large for residential landscapes. Shallow root system damages sidewalks. Verticillium wilt. Can be prone to bark splitting . Seeds freely, get many weed seedling trees .

Habitat

Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 2,333 meters (0 to 7,654 feet).[2]

Ecology: Invasive: Escapes from cultivation, invades open fields , meadows and woods where it forms thickets. Very prolific seeder.

Control: The seedlings can be easily pulled by hand when the soil is moist. Saplings can be pulled if a weed wrench or similar device is used. Large Norway maples have a tendency to sprout vigorously when cut down so an appropriate herbicide is recommended if removal is required.

Biology

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Reproduction

Duration: Perennial

Growth

Culture: Adaptable to many soils. Easily transplanted. Full sun is best. Tolerant of urban conditions for a maple.

Soil: Minimum pH: 4.5 • Maximum pH: 7.5

Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Full Sun .

Temperature: Cold Hardiness: 2b, 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b. (map)

Taxonomy

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Synonyms

Acer platanoides var. schwedleri Nichols.

Notes

Publishing author : L. Publication : Sp. Pl. 2: 1055 1753 [1 May 1753] Name Status: Accepted Name .

Last scrutiny: 15-Mar-2000

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Acer

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 642 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus. Here are just 100 of them:

A. barbatum (Florida Maple) · A. barbatum var. caddo (Caddo Florida Maple) · A. barbinerve (Red-Twig Korean Maple) · A. buergerianum (Three-Toothed Maple) · A. buergerianum formosanum (Taiwan Trident Maple) · A. buergerianum var. formosanum (Taiwan Trident Maple) · A. buergerianum 'ABTIR' (Street Wise® Trident Maple) · A. buergerianum 'Mino Yatsubusa' (Three-Toothed Maple) · A. buergerianum 'Naruto' (Three-Toothed Maple) · A. buergerianum 'Streetwise' (Trident Maple) · A. buergerianum 'Tancho' (Three-Toothed Maple) · A. caesium caesium (Indian Maple) · A. campbellii sinense (Campbell Maple) · A. campestre (Champion Field Maple) · A. campestre f. pulverulentum (Speckled Hedge Maple) · A. campestre L. 'Compactum' (Hedge Maple) · A. campestre 'Carnival' (Variegated Hedge Maple) · A. campestre 'Eastleigh Weeping' (Weeping Hedge Maple) · A. campestre 'Eco Sentry' (Field Maple 'eco Sentry') · A. campestre 'Evelyn' (Hedge Maple) · A. campestre 'Fastigiatum' (Hedge Maple) · A. campestre 'Nanum' (Hedge Maple) · A. campestre 'Postulense' (Hedge Maple) · A. campestre 'Queen Elizabeth' (Hedge Maple) · A. campestre 'Royal Ruby' (Hedge Maple) · A. campestre 'Schwerinii' (Hedge Maple) · A. capillipes (Japanese Striped Maple) · A. cappadocicum (Cappadocian Maple) · A. cappadocicum 'Aureum' (Cappadocian Maple) · A. carpinifolium (Hornbeam Maple) · A. caudatifolium (Kawakami Maple) · A. cinnamomifolium (Southern Maple) · A. circinatum (Mountain Maple) · A. circinatum 'Little Gem' (Mountain Maple) · A. circinatum 'Monroe' (Cutleaf Vine Maple) · A. circinatum 'Pacific Fire' (Mountain Maple) · A. circinatum 'Sunglow' (Mountain Maple) · A. circinatum 'Sunny Sister' (Mountain Maple) · A. cissifolium (Vine-Leaf Maple) · A. cissifolium henryi (Henry's Maple) · A. conspicuum (Snakebark Maple) · A. conspicuum 'Phoenix' (Snakebark Maple) · A. crataegifolium (Hawthorn Maple) · A. crataegifolium 'Veitchii' (Hawthorn Maple) · A. davidii (David Maple) · A. davidii 'Dawn Rainbow' (Davids Maple) · A. davidii 'George Forrest' (Davids Maple) · A. davidii 'Scarlet Forest' (Davids Maple) · A. davidii 'Serpentine' (Davids Maple) · A. discolor (Chinese Maple) · A. divergens (Divergent Maple) · A. elegantulum (Elegant Maple) · A. fabri (Fabers Maple) · A. forrestii (Forrests Maple) · A. freemanii (Freeman Maple) · A. ginnala (Amur Maple) · A. ginnala var. semenovii (Semenovs Amur Maple) · A. ginnala 'Compacta' (Dwarf Amur Maple) · A. ginnala 'Emerald Elf' (Amur Maple) · A. ginnala 'Flame' (Amur Flame Maple) · A. ginnala 'Mondy' (Red Rhapsody® Amur Maple) · A. ginnala 'Red Fruit' (Amur Maple) · A. glabrum (California Mountain Maple) · A. glabrum douglasii var. douglasii (Douglas Maple) · A. glabrum torreyi var. torreyi (California Mountain Maple) · A. glabrum Torr. var. diffusum (Greene) Smiley (Rocky Mountain Maple) · A. glabrum Torr. var. greenei Keller (Greene's Maple) · A. glabrum Torr. var. neomexicanum (Greene) Kearney & Peebles (New Mexico Maple) · A. glabrum Torr. var. torreyi (Greene) Smiley (Torrey Maple) · A. glabrum var. diffusum (Rocky Mountain Maple) · A. glabrum var. douglasii (Douglas Maple) · A. glabrum var. glabrum (Rocky Mountain Maple) · A. glabrum var. greenei (Greene's Maple) · A. glabrum var. neomexicanum (New Mexico Maple) · A. glabrum var. torreyi (Mountain Maple) · A. grandidentatum (Big Tooth Maple) · A. grandidentatum Nutt. var. sinuosum (Rehder) Little (Canyon Maple) · A. grandidentatum var. grandidentatum (Bigtooth Maple) · A. grandidentatum var. sinuosum (Canyon Maple) · A. griseum (Paper Bark Maple) · A. griseum 'Gingerbread' (Paper Bark Maple) · A. grosseri (Snakebark Maple) · A. henryi (Henrys Maple) · A. hyrcanum (Balkan Maple) · A. japonicum (Full Moon Maple) · A. japonicum var. Moonfire (Moonfire Japanese Maple) · A. japonicum 'Aconitifolium' (Fernleaf Full Moon Maple) · A. japonicum 'Ao Jutan' (Full Moon Maple) · A. japonicum 'Attaryi' (Full Moon Maple) · A. japonicum 'Fairy Lights' (Japanese Maple) · A. japonicum 'Green Cascade' (Full Moon Maple) · A. japonicum 'Itaya' (Full Moon Maple) · A. japonicum 'Kujaku Nishiki' (Full Moon Maple) · A. japonicum 'Lovett' (Japanese Maple) · A. japonicum 'Meigetsu' (Full Moon Maple) · A. japonicum 'Mikasayama' (Japanese Maple) · A. japonicum 'Oregon Fern' (Full Moon Maple) · A. japonicum 'Otaki' (Full Moon Maple) · A. japonicum 'O Isami' (Full Moon Maple) · A. japonicum 'Taki-No-Gawa' (Full Moon Maple)

More Info

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Further Reading

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Notes

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Contributors

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal November 11, 2007:

Identifiers

Footnotes

  1. Nianhe Xia & Paul A. Gadek "Sapindaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 12 Page 1, 6. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
  2. Mean = 156.180 meters (512.402 feet), Standard Deviation = 202.960 based on 7,630 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]
Last Revised: 7/14/2012