330 



Canadian Forestry Journal, July, IQ20. 



Our Canadian Maples 



^y B. R. Morton, B.Sc. F. 



Large-leafed Maple, Vancouver Island — (Courtesy of Dominion Forestry Branch). 



There are no trees in Canada more 

 popular for shade purposes than our 

 maples. If a census were taken of the 

 trees in our towns and cities, they 

 would lead numerically. Although we 

 have a hundred or more trees from 

 which to choose, probably eighty per 

 cent, of our city trees are maples. The 

 reason for the maples' popularity, how- 

 ever, is easily apparent. As a whole, 

 they are healthy trees with luxuriant 

 foliage, producing abundant shade. 

 They are symmetrical, and their forms 

 adopt themselves readily to the re- 

 quirements of the street and town. 

 They are fairly rapid in growth. 



Distribution 



We have ten native species of maples. 

 No other tree with the exception of the 

 oak is represented by more species. 

 There are eleven native oaks, most of 

 them confined to a very limited range 

 in south-western Ontario. Of our ten 

 native maples, only five are used to any 

 extent for shade tree planting. 

 Throughout Eastern Canada four of 

 them, the hard or sugar, the white or 

 silver, the red or soft and the Manitoba 

 or box elder are most commonly 

 planted. In addition to these two 

 species imported from Europe — the 

 Norway and the sycamore maple are 



