Red Maple (Acer rubrum)

Red Maple is found on a wide variety of sites throughout the Arboretum's forests. Its fall foliage presents a brilliant display of color from bright yellow and orange to red. The opposite, palmate leaves are mostly 3-lobed but sometimes have 5 lobes. In the summer, the leaf petioles (leaf stalks) are often red and the undersides of the leaves are pale green to silver. In spring, red maple is one of the earliest trees to bloom (as early as February or March). Its small red flowers produce abundant seeds that are eaten by squirrels, birds, and other wildlife.

Red maple is found throughout the Eastern U.S. and Midwest - from the Maritimes in Canada and New England, to Florida, and west to Texas and Minnesota and states in-between. A number of excellent cultivars are available that are among the most popular landscaping tree species available.

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