Manitoba Maple (Box-elder Maple) (Trees of Manitoba)

Manitoba Maple (Box-elder Maple)

Acer negundo

Traditional Indigenous Names ⁴

Cree: Sisipóskwatátik
Ojibwe: Ziizibaakwadwaatig
Michif: Araab manitobah

Summary from Wikipedia ⁵

Acer negundo is a species of maple native to North America. In Canada it is commonly known as Manitoba maple and occasionally as elf maple. Box elder, boxelder maple, ash-leaved maple, and maple ash are its most common names in the United States; in the United Kingdom and Ireland it is also known as ashleaf maple.

Easy identifiers ⁴

Box-elder Maple, or Manitoba Maple have distinct leaves with three noticeable points, one long one at the tip and two smaller points that frame it. When compared to other tree leaves, the Manitoba Maple leaf stands out because it is the only type of maple tree that has compound leaves, and it does not have very deep lobes like many other maple leaves have.

Form ⁴

Small-to-medium sized deciduous tree with spreading crown of thick limbs.

Bark ⁴

Light brown or dark grey, furrowed into irregular flat-topped ridges.

Twigs ⁴

Opposite, stout, smooth, densely fuzzy, at least near tip; green at first but becoming grey to black. Lenticels common, rusty-brown, elongated, often covered by fuzz, at least near tips of current year growth. Terminal bud blunt, about 3 - 8 millimetres (1/8 inch) long, hairy; lateral buds smaller, encased by outer scale that splits at tip revealing bud. Leaf scars semi-circular, narrow, coming together on the sides of twig forming a point; bundle scars inconspicuous.

Leaves ⁴

Opposite, compound, 15 - 38 centimetres (6 - 15 inches) long, composed of 3 - 5 coarse-toothed or lobed, paired, leaflets 5 - 12 centimetres (2 - 5 inches) long.

Flowers ⁴

Before or with leaves, in yellow-green clusters, male flowers often with conspicuous elongated red-tipped stamens.

Fruit ⁴

Winged, wrinkled, dry, yellowish, ascending, in pairs, each 30 - 50 millimetres (1 1/2 - 2 inches) long.

Occurrence ⁴

Throughout central and southern part of Manitoba usually in moist habitats and along stream beds.

Fun facts ⁴

Manitoba Maple like to inhabit areas along streams and seasonally flooded areas but can also adapt to drier areas. Manitoba Maple is tapped to collect sap used to make Manitoba Maple syrup.

Sources and Credits

(c) Manitoba Forestry, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Manitoba Forestry
(c) Radu Chibzii, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://www.flickr.com/photos/radu_chibzii/38849789014/
(c) Salomé, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://www.flickr.com/photos/79667341@N00/2424261227
(c) Manitoba Forestry, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
Adapted by Manitoba Forestry from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acer_negundo

More Info

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