#Best type of maple tree to plant how to#
#Best type of maple tree to plant skin#

Grey-brown with broken into plates when mature.

Bark: Twigs are reddish with lenticels (checking).

Fruit: Pair of keys (Samaras) produced in late spring.

Leaf Notes: Underside of leaf is lighter in color than the upper side.

USDA Plant Hardiness Zone: 3-9 (More information on hardiness zones).

Notice how deep the lobes are on each leaf.

The Biota of North America Program (BONAP) distribution map here.

Interactive USDA distribution map and plant profile here.

Pictures on the web here (Google images) and here (Bing images).

Also planted in cities along roads and in parks.

Habitat: Damp places, wet areas, along streams and rivers.

Bark: Grey and shaggy when old, silver-grey and smooth when young.

Flowers: Dense clusters of red flowers in early spring before the leaves open.

Leaf Notes: Underside of leaf is a white-silver.

Leaf Margin: Serrated (saw toothed edge).

Leaf Size: 8–16 cm (3 to 6 inches) long and 6–12 cm (2 1/3 to 4 3/4 inches) wide.

Leaf Phyllotaxis (Arrangement) on branch: Opposite.

5 main lobes, with smaller lobe on each of the 5 lobes. Typical Maple Leaf shape with very deep cut lobes.

Plant Size: Up to 30 meters (100 feet) tall, usually less, but can even be a bit more.

USDA Plant Hardiness Zone: 3-8 (More information on hardiness zones).

By the way, the taste of this one is catching on in Europe, and the syrup made from the Silver Maple sap is the most expensive kind in Europe now.

I find it perfect to boil off half for using with the tea and coffee recipes listed below. It has about half the sugar content of the Sugar Maple, so you will need to boil off half to get it to the Sugar Maple sugar level. It does require more boiling down than the Sugar Maple sap, but I don't mind. Sugar Maple is sweeter, Manitoba Maple is very good too, but this one has a taste that to me, is the best. This is the one I like best for the taste. Known also as the Creek Maple, Silverleaf Maple, Soft Maple, Water Maple, Swamp Maple and White Maple. Like many tree based edibles, the bad news is it will take many years after planting before you can tap the sap. Like most trees, if you have the soil loosed by digging around where it will go, and mixing in compost with the soil from the hole, and watering well after planting and not letting it dry out for the first year, you will have much better luck with it taking and it will grow faster. If transplanting, do it in the early spring or fall. If where you want them is wet for a time in the spring, go for the Silver or Red Maple. Can handle a wide range of soil types and acidity. They tolerate shade better than most trees, but will grow faster in more light. Plant a key, transplant a little tree, or buy one and plant.

#Best type of maple tree to plant skin#

DO NOT use sap from the Striped Maple (Acer pensylvanicum), in fact, don't get the sap on the skin as it can cause a Poison Ivy type reaction, though milder.

#Best type of maple tree to plant how to#

The instructions for how to use the sap is after the descriptions of the four types of Maple I use. But the Silver, Red, Sugar and Manitoba Maples are the only four I have used, so they are the only ones I can recommend. There are other types of Maple trees on the East side of North America that are said can be used for the sap including the invasive Norway Maple. If you don't feel confident doing that, identify the trees the year before while the leaves are still on. Once the buds start to open, it is too late for harvesting the sap, so you will have to be able to identify them without leaves. Silver maples and sugar maples should be at least 20 cm (8 inches) in diameter, and only put in one tap per tree. The nice thing about Manitoba Maples is they are very common in cities, growing where they are unwanted, and even fairly small ones will work (15 cm or 6 inches diameter truck at chest height is as small as you should use). I've made the drink, tea, coffee and syrup out of the Silver Maple, Red Maple, Sugar Maple and Manitoba Maple Sap, and while each has its own flavor, all are good. When most people think about tapping a maple tree, they think of tapping a Sugar Maple and making maple syrup out of it. Maple Drink, Tea, Coffee & Syrup (Silver Maple, Red Maple, Sugar Maple & Manitoba Maple Sap).)įor a How-To article on making Maple syrup, go to the Articles section pages: Part 1 - Getting the Sap and Part 2 - Processing the Sap. (NOTE: There is an entry on Maples at the Nature's Restaurant Online site.