Trees that are commonly known as Maple trees are actually scientifically given the genus Acer. There are one hundred and twenty five different species of this tree, many of which are in Asia, with others in Europe, Africa and North America.

Appearance

Maples come in the form of trees as well as shrubs. The trees can grow to be forty five meters in height, which shrubs usually stay at less than ten meters tall. Most Maple trees are deciduous but there are a few evergreen species in the Mediterranean region and Southern Asia.

Maple flowers can be red, orange, yellow or green. The flowers are quite small but when found in huge numbers in a tree can give amazingly colourful results.

Uses

The most popular use of maples is as ornamental trees, and you can see them in many homes, municipalities and businesses. The most fast-growing and cold-resistant maple is the Norway Maple. Other maples, particularly the more unusual or smaller species, are used as specimen trees.

They are also widely used in the bonsai art, because they respond ideally to techniques that are used for leaf ramification and reduction, and many of the maple species can be used.

Maples are obviously important as sources of wood and syrup. The dried wood of these trees is used to smoke food. The Sugar Maple is used to produce syrup, which is achieved by tapping the tree for sap, then boiling it into maple sugar or maple taffy. Other closely-related species of the Sugar Maple can also be used, but they do not yield as much syrup. Sugar Maples can live to be 300 years old.

Larger species of maples give valuable timber. Bowling pins and alley lanes, butcher's blocks and pool cue shafts are made of Sugar Maple wood. Baseball bats are also made with maple wood. Timber

Care Tips

The most important thing to remember when caring for maples is good soil. The soil used determines how much water and nutrients the plant gets, and also affects how well the tree can use the water and nutrients. Using the perfect soil for a maple means that it will be able to handle living in an urban environment and be able to fight diseases. If you own maples, the best option to take is to add mycorrhizal fungi, which will help make your soil more suited for your maple tree, and will also directly benefit the maple.

Popularity

These maple trees are gaining in popularity because of their fall colour. Some maples give a brilliant red colour while others are a spectacular yellow. Some can even end up giving you several colours ranging from red through yellow and orange, and all on the very same tree. When picking maple trees, you should know which colours you want according to their species, so that you know what to expect and whether it is the colour you prefer showing up in your garden. Keep in mind that when living outside of their ideal zone range, many maple trees tend not to give out their regular colours.