OF OHIO 



25 



Fig. 7. Soft maple and white elm logs in the yard of a basket factory, 

 included under Box Industry.) 



MAPLES 



(Statistics 



Five maples grow in the State of Ohio. They are the silver 

 maple (Acer saccharinuni), the red or scarlet maple (Acer rubrum), 

 the sugar maple (Ace? saccharum),-iht black maple (Acer sacchanim 

 nigruni), and the ash-leaf maple or box elder (Acer negundo). The 

 b]ack maple is found only in the southern part of the State. The 

 red maple prefers moist soil but it also grows on slopes and ridges, 

 and is found generally throughout the State. The silver maple is 

 usually found following the rivers and streams and on the edges of 

 swamps. The red and silver maples contribute the soft maple 

 lumber, the former being more abundant, and hard maple is from 

 the sugar maple tree. The sugar maple is commercially the most 

 important in the State and grows in all localities except swamps. It 

 supplies practically all of the maple sugar produced in Ohio and its 

 wood next to white oak is called on for by a greater number of users 

 than any lumber the Ohio manufacturers demand. Today, the 

 maples with the oaks lead in the manufacture of hardwood flooring. 

 It goes into various kinds of furniture, especially hidden work of 

 case goods like drawer sides, bottoms, mirror backs, etc., and is used 

 for finish in upholstered furniture where it is stained in imitation of 

 expensive cabinet woods. The occurrence of curly or bird's eye, 

 mostly in the hard maple, makes it extremely valuable in the manu- 

 facture of highly artistic furniture usually for bed rooms. Its less 



