Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum)

Shade, syrup and fall color are worth the wait for this medium to slow growing native.  Fall foliage of yellow orange and red.  Mature height 60’ -100’.  Grows in Partial Sun/Sun/Shade. Prefers moist deep, fertile soil.

Sugar maples support many native animals, birds and insects.  Deer and porcupines rely on it for food.  Moose and snowshoe hares browse on the twigs and foliage.  Red and grey squirrels, chipmunks and flying squirrels feed on its seeds, buds, twigs, and leaves. Several insect species and honeybees use the early-produced pollen. The Sugar Maple is a caterpillar host for the Cecropia Silkmoth and the Rosy Maple Moth. Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers use Sugar Maples as a source of sap.

6-12″ seedling.

Photo Credit: James St. John, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons