Rural School Leaflet 1227 



first. The artist has come to our assistance again, and you will see in 

 the drawing of the seeds that the difference in the fruit is clearly brought 

 out. The red maple bears its seeds in clusters close to the stem. 



The moosewood has a leaf that distinguishes it easily from other maples. 

 The leaf is large, with lobes only slightly cut, and is soft in texture. 

 Perhaps the most noticeable character of this tree — one by which the 

 boys will learn to recognize it — is the bark. This is reddish or greenish 

 brown marked with pale stripes running up and down, so that the name 

 " striped maple " is very appropriate. The flowers of this maple also 

 are borne in racemes, so that this feature, together with the striped bark, 

 will always serve to identify it. 



The box elder, or ash-leaved maple, is the odd member of the family, 

 for it has leaves totally different from those of the other maples that we 

 know in this country. Instead of a single, simple leaf, this maple has 

 a compound leaf with three to five leaflets. If it were not for the fruit, 

 which is a true maple " key," we should feel more inclined to call it an 

 ash — a feeling that is shown in one of the common names for the tree. 

 The box elder has been used for planting in the treeless regions of the 

 Middle West because it will endure dry weather and will grow rapidly 

 even on relatively poor soils. But the wood is weak and perishable and 

 the tree almost always grows crooked, especially if it is exposed to 

 winds ; so that altogether it is not to be considered very valuable. 



The Norway maple, which has been planted extensively as a shade 

 tree because of its rapid growth and heavy foliage, is a native of Europe 

 but does very well in this climate. The leaves bear a general resemblance 

 to those of the hard maple, but are much darker in color, usually larger, 

 and thicker. If one is in doubt about the tree, the milky sap from a 

 freshly broken leaf stem will distinguish it. In winter the leaf buds are 

 very large and the bark is smooth and dark-colored. 



The sycamore maple, another European tree, is also planted to some 

 extent in this country although it does not grow so well in our climate 

 as does the Norway maple. The leaves are conspicuously three-lobed, 

 and are very broad compared with those of the native hard maple. The 

 margins of the leaves are serrated, somewhat like those of the red maple. 



The most valuable and useful of all the maples is the sugar maple. 

 The wood is heavy, hard, and close-grained. It is used for furniture, floor- 

 ing, and many small wooden articles. It also makes one of the best 

 fire woods that our forests produce. The custom of making sugar and 

 sirup from the sap of this tree is well known and needs no special men- 

 tion here. 



Besides the maples mentioned above, it is likely that many Japanese 

 maples will be found in parks and gardens. These small maples, rarely 

 larger than bushes, are remarkable for the beauty of their leaves. 



