Sugar Maple
The Sugar maple is one of the best for fall color in our area. This maple is a native to the United States and is one of the most common hardwood trees in the eastern part of the country. There are also some native areas of Sugar maples in the eastern part of Kansas and the Caddo area of Oklahoma. Sugar maples leaves are 3 to 5 lobed, approximately 3 to 6” across and generally dark green in color. Trees are upright to oval or almost egg shaped and typically have dense foliage. In a landscape setting these maples are typically 60-70’ tall however in their native area they can reach 100-120’ tall. In the fall these trees turn a brilliant yellow to burnt orange to red depending on the variety. This maple gets its name from the sweet sap that is commonly used to make maple syrup. The other common names for the Sugar maple are the “rock maple” or “hard maple” referring to it’s dense wood that is among the hardest known. There are a multitude of cultivars available on the market for this tree but the ones that appear to do the best in our area are from the Caddo region of Oklahoma. At the John Pair research center in Haysville Kansas the “John Pair” Sugar Maple and the “Legacy” variety were among the most consistent and hardiest Sugar maples trialed. These selections are resistant to leaf tatter, tolerate heat and drought conditions better than other cultivars. These maples are an excellent shade and lawn tree if you give them room to grow and spread. They do not do well in crowded areas or spots where there is a ton of pollution.
