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Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum)

[ Trees > Hardwoods > Maples . . . ]      Forest Type: Various

Range

Leaves with 5 lobes separated primarily by U's (rather than V's); undersides of leaves not whitish; leaf points and edges not typically curling down; bark grayish brown.

by Michael Kuo

Habitat: Found in various forest types.

Stature: 60-80 feet high; to 3 feet in diameter; when mature featuring a dense, rounded crown.

Leaves: 3-5 inches long; simple; with 5 (rarely 3) lobes separated by U-shaped sinuses; smooth; bright green above; paler green (but not whitish) below; turning yellow to orangish yellow in the fall.

Bark: At first smooth and gray, becoming dark gray and furrowed or platelike.

Fruit: A reddish brown "helicopter" about an inch long, falling in autumn.


(References consulted)


Frequent Mushroom Associates:

Maples are not mycorrhizal, but many saprobes are dedicated to decomposing sugar maple wood and debris, including: Agrocybe acericola; Armillaria tabescens (especially in urban settings); Climacodon septentrionalis; Hypsizygus tessulatus; Marasmius cohaerens; Phlebia incarnata; and many more.

 

Acer saccharum

Acer saccharum

Acer saccharum

Acer saccharum



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Cite this page as:

Kuo, M. (2007, April). Sugar maple (Acer saccharum). Retrieved from the MushroomExpert.Com Web site: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/trees/acer_saccharum.html