The Trees of Vermont 173 



ACERACEAE 



White Maple. Silver Maple 

 Acer saccharinum L. [Acer dasycarpum Ehrh.] 



Habit. — A beautiful tree, growing to a height of 60-80 feet, with 

 a trunk diameter of 2-4 feet, usually separating near the ground into 

 3-4 upright stems which are destitute of branches for a considerable 

 distance. Usually the long, slender branches bend downwards, but 

 with their tips ascending in a graceful curve. Crown broad, especially 

 in its upper portion. 



Leaves. — Opposite, simple, 3-6 inches long and nearly as broad ; 

 usually 5-lobed by narrow, acute sinuses which extend nearly to the 

 midrib, the lobes often sublobed, sharply toothed; light green above, 

 silvery white beneath, turning pale yellow in autumn; petioles long, 

 slender, drooping. 



Flowers. — April-May, before the leaves ; polygamo-monoecious 

 or dioecious ; small, yellow-green, in crowded, sessile umbels ; calyx 5- 

 lobed (sometimes each lobe again divided); corolla 0; stamens ^-7; 

 ovary hairy. 



Fruit. — May, germinating as soon as it reaches the ground ; paired 

 samaras, large, glabrous, curving inwards, one samara often aborted. 



Winter-buds. — Dark red, blunt; the terminal about ^ inch long, 

 with bud-scales often apiculate ; flower-buds clustered on side spurs. 



Bark. — Twigs smooth, red-gray, lustrous ; young trunks gray, 

 smooth ; old trunks dark gray, more or less furrowed, separating into 

 thin, loose scales. Plate VII. 



Wood. — Hard, strong, close-grained, rather brittle, perishable, 

 pale brown, with thick, lighter colored sapwood. 



Distribution. — Frequent throughout Vermont, especially near the 

 shores of Lake Champlain and tributary streams. 



Habitat. — Prefers low, rich bottom-lands, subject to occasional 

 inundation, but not in swamps ; banks of rivers and lakes at low alti- 

 tudes. 



Notes. — The silver maple is a large, graceful tree, generally dis- 

 tributed along our water courses, especially near the shores of Lake 

 Champlain and the streams emptying into it. It resembles the red 

 maple but is distinguished from it by its longer, more deeply cut, 

 lighter green leaves which are silvery white on the lower side. Al- 

 though the silver maple flourishes best in moist soil, it will make vigor- 

 ous growth and become a beautiful shade tree in dry locations. 



