![]() ![]() The scientific name of bigleaf maple is Acer macrophyllum PurshĪcer macrophyllum Pursh var. database/feis/plants/tree/acemac/all.html Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICSįryer, Janet L.If they are growing close to buildings and roadways, regular clearance pruning may be necessary to raise the canopy for increased clearance. Bigleaf maples’ spreading canopies will often grow out and down. Structural pruning involves the selective removal of crossing or rubbing branches, removal of deadwood, and slight thinning for removal of flawed or suppressed growth. Our arborists generally recommend pruning bigleaf maples about every five years to encourage a robust, balanced form. When the leaves fall in autumn, the thick blanket of leaves should be raked off turf to prevent the turf from dying. Summer supplemental watering will allow the leaves of the tree to reach their full size. As they make great shade trees, planting the tree to the southwest of your home or gathering area will maximize its shade potential in the summer. If you have a large yard with these conditions, be sure to plant the tree far enough away from any structures to allow the canopy to reach its full spread of 75 feet. These stunning trees have a shallow, spreading root system, and can tolerate seasonally wet soil for short periods of time. The bigleaf maple feeds many small mammals (like the Douglas squirrel) and birds on its seeds and flowers.īigleaf maples grow best on deep, well-drained soil in full to part sun. Mosses and a licorice fern can be seen growing on the bark of the bigleaf maple above. Because the bark of the bigleaf maple is deeply ridged, it plays host to many epiphytes, which do not need soil to grow. They are also found less commonly growing on higher ground in riparian habitat near water. In their natural habitat, bigleaf maples are found most commonly in the forest or on forested slopes. Bigleaf maple bark is grey and deeply ridged. The leaves turn a brilliant yellow in the fall before the large leaves drop to form a dense carpet of brown leaves. The flowers of spring are followed in the summer by bunches of large, fuzzy “helicopter” seeds, or winged samaras, which develop throughout the season and are dispersed by the wind after fully ripening in the fall. Yellow flowers grow in drooping 6 inch clusters in the spring before the emergence of bright green leaves. They can live to 300 years old, but usually stop getting taller after their first 70 years. Bigleaf maples grow very quickly when young, but slow their growth rate with age. The density of shade cast by the huge leaves can be seen under the canopy of the bigleaf maple above, right. The bigleaf maple above, left, shades the roof of a house in southwest Portland. Their height, canopy spread, and large leaves make them ideal shade trees. In the open, growth is slightly shorter with a more rounded canopy 75 feet across. ![]() In thick stands, the tree grows up to 100 feet tall in a columnar shape. The bigleaf maple boasts the largest leaves of any maple tree, with its 5 lobes stretching up to 12 inches across. The tree is native to the Pacific Northwest and is commonly called the bigleaf maple due to the huge size of its deciduous leaves. Visitors to Oregon are awed by the enormous leaves of our Oregon maple Acer macrophyllum. AugBy Sarah Fry Species Highlight, Tree Appreciation ![]()
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