Norway maple

Značilnosti

Norway maples are not typically cultivated for maple syrup production due to the lower sugar content of the sap compared to sugar maple.

Opis

Acer platanoides is a deciduous tree, growing to 10-25 m tall with a trunk up to 1.5 m in diameter, and a broad, rounded crown. The bark is grey-brown and shallowly grooved. Unlike many other maples, mature trees do not tend to develop a shaggy bark. The shoots are green at first, soon becoming pale brown. The winter buds are shiny red-brown. The leaves are opposite, palmately lobed with five lobes; the lobes each bear one to three side teeth, and an otherwise smooth margin. The leaf petiole is 8–20 cm long, and secretes a milky juice when broken. The autumn colour is usually yellow, occasionally orange-red. The flowers are in corymbs of 15–30 together, yellow to yellow-green with five sepals and five petals 3–4 mm long; flowering occurs in early spring before the new leaves emerge. The fruit is a double samara with two winged seeds. The seeds are disc-shaped, strongly flattened. The wings are 3–5 cm long, widely spread, approaching a 180° angle.

Source: lifehabitats.com