Soft maple

NECTAR PRODUCTION:
200 kilograms per ha

SOURCE FOR HONEY BEES:
Major

General distribution:

The range of silver maple extends from New Brunswick to west to northern Michigan, northern Wisconsin, and northern Minnesota; south to southeastern South Dakota and eastern Oklahoma; east to northern Georgia; and north through western South Carolina and western North Carolina to Maine. It is found in northwestern Florida on the Apalachicola and Choctawhatchee rivers but is not otherwise found on the Gulf or Atlantic Coastal Plain.

Map of distribution and habitat in USA

This plant is present in at least 45 states/provinces in this country.

See The Map

Botanical description:

Silver maple is a native, deciduous, medium-sized tree. Mature height ranges from 90 to 120 feet (27-36 m). Silver maple is characterized as a fast-growing species. The trunk is often separated into several upright branches near the ground. The crown is usually open and rounded. The bark of young stems is smooth; it becomes darker and furrowed to flaky on older stems. The root system is shallow and fibrous. The deepest roots of 35-year-old silver maples planted on clay soil in North Dakota were 55 inches (139.7 cm). The longest roots extended horizontally 49 feet (14.9 m). The fruit is a winged samara, 1.4 to 1.9 inch (3.5-5 cm) long and up to 0.48 inch (12 mm) wide.

Silver maples can live to 130 years or longer. The national champion silver maple (1972) was found in Michigan. It was 125 feet (38.1 m) tall, 22.58 feet (82.6 m) in circumference, and had a crown spread of 111 feet (33.8 m).

Seasonal development:

Silver maple is one of the earliest flowering species within its range; flowering occurs over a short period from late February to April or May, depending on latitude. All flowers on one individual are within a day or so of each other in development; the period of pollen receptivity lasts from a few days to a week. The flowers often fall before the leaves are fully grown. The seeds ripen and are released over a very short period, usually less than 2 weeks from April to June. Germination usually occurs shortly after dispersal.