Among some forty species of maple there are six native species, if the ash-leaved maple is included in this genus. Two species from Europe, the Norway and sycamore maples, are planted commonly throughout New England.
All the maples have opposite leaf-scars.
Sugar or Rock Maple Acer saccharum
The general shape is erect, with smooth, clean branches. In old trees the bark breaks away in long, shallow fissures with curling ridges, giving the trunk a ploughed appearance. The buds are narrow, brown, and sharp-pointed. Delicate pinkish leaves folded inside the bud. Leaf-scars small and opposite; also the twigs branch opposite each other.
Among the different characteristics of this tree in winter, two stand out conspicuously as unfailing means of identification,—the sharp-pointed brown buds and the rough furrowed trunk with smooth places between the fissures. When young it can be distinguished at a distance by its erect habit of growth and general shapeliness, the main trunk often extending up into the tree unbroken by divisions.
SUGAR MAPLE
Acer saccharum
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TRUNK OF A YOUNG SUGAR MAPLE