Red Maple Tree - Trees of Nebraska

Red Maple (Acer rubrum)

Nebraska Forest Service

The northeastern United States is well known for fall

color and perhaps the tree that stands out the most is

the red maple (Acer rubrum). Maples in general

produce some of the most striking colors in fall. But

red maple lives up to its name with brilliant red

colors.

Red maple does grow well in eastern Nebraska. It is

a large forest tree and native across the entire eastern

part of the country all the way to the Missouri river.

The red maple is used to sites that are moist and

grows in bottomlands and along streams and rivers.

The tree will grow in what foresters call “dog hair”

stands where trees are very close together and tall. It

is a fast growing tree and similar in habit to silver

maple.

Red maple is used for furniture, cabinets and veneer.

It can also be tapped for sap, but is not as productive

as sugar maple due to its lower sugar content. Red maple is considered a soft wood

species and it is Rhode Island’s state tree.

While red maple is often planted in this part of the country it sometimes has problems

with heavy clay sites. The tree likes soils that are more acidic and have higher organic

content than most soils here. But it can be planted successfully on sites that are not

terribly disturbed from construction or farming operations.

There are many varieties of red maple. The most popular is “red

sunset” red maple. The “northwood” red maple is a Minnesota variety

and more adapted to our geographic area. In reality the best

performance may be obtained by planting pure red maple (not grafted).

Red maple has attractive ornamental features in every season. Early in

spring, before leafing out, clusters of tiny red flowers with long, showy

stamens cover the branches. Emerging leaves and winged seeds are

red. The petioles (leaf stems) are red throughout the growing season.

Fall foliage is striking and the bark, shaggy with age, is a nice winter feature. Red maple

gets its name from the reddish color of the youngest twigs and the reddish buds that are

visible in winter.

If you’re looking for bright red fall colors then red maple is a tree to consider.