#493 Acer saccharinum Common Names: silver maple, soft maple, white maple, river maple Family: Aceraceae (maple Family) Get link to this Profile or click for data record #493 e-mail this page

On windy days this maple shimmers as the leaves are tossed by the breezes exposing the silvery white lower surfaces.

Location
Silver maple is native to North America where it has a very wide geographic range. It occurs from northeastern Canada, west to Michigan and South Dakota, south to Florida, and west to Arkansas. It grows on a wide variety of sites, but attains its best growth on rich, well drained alluvial soils along rivers in the Midwest.

Culture
Light: Full sun to partial shade.
Moisture: Moist, well drained.
Hardiness: USDA Zones 4 to 8.
Propagation: Seeds and cuttings.

Usage
Silver maple is used primarily as a decorative ornamental shade tree. Its popularity is due to the fact that it is very inexpensive and readily available from discount stores and other outlets. This short-lived tree should probably be avoided in many cases in favor of more durable species such as the sugar maple (A. saccharum).

Features
Silver maple's subtle pale silver foliage and its wide adaptability make it useful as an ornamental over a very large area. One troublesome trait of this tree is that it has very brittle branches which are easily damaged by heavy snows, ice, and high winds. It may be best to plant this tree in protected sites to minimize potential damage.

WARNING
Brittle branches make it sensitive to exposed sites. Shallow roots make it difficult to grow grass beneath this tree and difficult to mow what little does survive.

Jack Scheper 10/30/98; updated Steve Christman 11/27/99, 2/9/04

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