Acer saccharinum

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Silver Maple

Sapindaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:Tree
Size:75-100 ft tall by 35-50 ft wide
Life Span:Long-lived perennial
Flower Color:Red turning greenish-yellow
Fruit Color:Brown
Phenology:Deciduous. Flowers before leafing out in late winter - early spring.
Noted for:Fall color

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:Specimen tree. Frequently used as a street tree as tolerant of root disturbance. Fall color is yellow.
Considerations:Its prolific root system is notorious for invading and clogging leaky underground drainage and water lines. Susceptible to wind or ice damage due to its brittle wood.
Propagation:Can be grown from purchased saplings or from seed. Also softwood cuttings.
Availability:Native nurseries, FNPS plant sales
Light: Full Sun,  Part Shade
Moisture Tolerance:
always floodedextremely dry
 (Usually moist, occasional inundation ----- to ----- Not wet but not extremely dry)
Moisture Tolerance: Usually moist, occasional inundation ----- to ----- Not wet but not extremely dry
Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.
Salt Spray/ Salty Soil Tolerance:Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray.
Soil or other substrate:Loam, Sand
Soil pH:Broadly tolerant

Ecology

Wildlife:
 

The  are important food for squirrels during late winter/early spring. Budburst comes during the critical late winter-spring period when stored food supplies of squirrels are exhausted.  

Important as a beaver food source in areas where it is common. May be important to wood ducks.

Insects:
  

Attracts bees.

Larval host for Cecropia silkmoth (Hyalophora cecropia).

Native Habitats:Floodplains.

Distribution and Planting Zones

Natural Range in Florida
USDA Zones

Suitable to grow in:
8A 8B 

USDA zones are based on minimum winter temperatures

Comments

Ethnobotany:Sap could be used for sugaring, but it's only half as sweet as the sugar maple.
General Comments:Fall foliage color is yellow. While used extensively as a street tree in the north, this fast growing species is relatively weak.