Description

Leaves: Opposite; simple; 2" to 5" wide and long; deciduous; palmately 3- to 5-lobed; lobe margins entire or sometimes divided into additional small lobes; bright green and glabrous above, paler with some fine hairs beneath; fall color bright orange-red to red; petiole 1" to 2" long, typically shorter than the leaf blade.

Twigs/buds: Twigs slender; glabrous; red.  Terminal bud 1/16" long; red; pointed.

Flowers/fruit: Dioecious.  Flowers yellow, no petals, small, inconspicuous; appearing in spring.  Fruit a samara; U-shaped, double-winged, wings spread slightly, 1" long; green when mature in fall.

Bark: Gray-brown; shallowly furrowed.

Wood: Somewhat important locally where native; growth rings fairly distinct; diffuse-porous; hard; dense; mainly used for firewood.

General: Native from southern Idaho south to Mexico and east to Texas, including much of Utah in mountainous locations.  This is the common maple that gives Logan Canyon and other Utah foothill and mountain locations their outstanding fall color.  Withstands high soil pH much better than many introduced maples.  Intermediate shade tolerance.

Landscape Uses: This is a very good tree that should be used much more in the landscape.  It is tolerant of our soil and climatic conditions, and even appears to withstand some drought when planted in the valleys.  Fall color is usually very good.  Tree shape can be shrubby or tree-like and size can be small to medium.  I have seen this planted in Logan both as an individual specimen and as small trees in a dense group and both effects were appealing.  Grafted trees planted at Red Butte Gardens in Salt Lake City have failed.  Zones 4(3?)-7.

Cultivar: 'Rocky Mountain Glow'.

Characteristics