Perhaps the red and scarlet coloring of the maples has something to do 

 with the name "Grief Trees" given to certain trees in the West of Scotland, 

 but more particularly because it was on these trees that the barons used to 

 hang their enemies. 



The maples are valuable trees for park and street planting. The ma- 

 jority have an upright habit, make rapid growth and are little subject to 

 insect attacks. They do not flourish, however, under arid conditions. 



SUGAR MAPLE 



The sugar maple (Acer saccharum) which has a natural range from 

 Newfoundland to Georgia, and westward to Manitoba and Texas, is a hardy, 

 erect tree of symmetrical habit. In the forest it rises to sixty or seventy feet 

 without a branch. In the open it develops stout, upright branches about 

 ten feet from the ground which form a narrow head while the tree is young. 

 Old trees have broad, round-topped crowns which cast a dense shade. 



Sugar maple requires a cool climate and abundant moisture for its best 

 development. Unfortunately it is apt not to thrive in cities because of its exact- 

 ing requirements, and the sensitiveness of its foliage to dust and smoke. It 

 should do well in the northern part of California as a roadside tree for which it 

 is desirable because of its fine foliage and long life. The winter condition of 

 the sugar maple is especially striking when the erect, shapely outline of the 

 tree is clearly brought out with the twigs and branches forming a fine network 

 against the sky. 



BIG-LEAF MAPLE 



The big-leaf maple (Acer macro phyllum), often called Oregon maple, is 

 a native tree which is widely distributed along the streams and creeks in the 

 Coast ranges from southern California to southeastern Alaska. It is also 

 found in the Sierra Nevadas along streams at elevations ranging from 2000 

 to 5000 feet. 



The big-leaf maple was first collected by the Lewis and Clark expedition 

 in 1805 at the great rapids of the Columbia River. Its wood was used by the 

 Indians for .boat paddles, and the twigs were valued as medicine to bring 

 riches. The beauty of the tree was early appreciated, and it is probably more 

 widely planted as a street and ornamental tree on the Pacific Coast than any 

 other maple. 



(86) 



