Big-leaf maple (Acer macrophyllum)

Plant Profile

No other tree so fills the creekside coastal forests with fall color as does the big-leaf maple. Its leaves are then a glowing yellow, sometimes a foot across, warning flags that gently signal the changing of the seasons. Less visible, but possessing a stunning beauty are the tree's fruits, called samaras or keys, that form a pair of delicate, podlike "wings" over the seeds. These make their autumnal "fall" by detaching from the twigs and then spinning slowly to the ground, the wings rotating like the blades of a lazily moving overhead fan. Spring, too, is a time of display for the big-leaf, though it then chooses a more subtle effect. Below the young leaves hang clusters of greenish yellow flowers, bright in their newness. The maple's bark adds its attractiveness to the scenic ensemble with its dark furrows, which are often covered with a thick coat of mosses and lichens. Spectacular as these aspects of Acer macrophyllum are, it is perhaps the tree's overall effect which is most captivating. Who cannot help but pause when, in the midst of a conifer-filled forest, a twisting, branching big-leaf maple suddenly appears, its limbs a rebellion of horizontals and diagonals in the realm of the vertical evergreens, its enormous leaves waving in the wind while a litter of those from last year crunch underfoot? In a setting dominated by giant, straight growing redwood, spruce and fir, the big-leaf softens and soothes, reminding us that grace is the counterpoint of strength and that one without the other is a condition incomplete.

Big-leaf maple can grow up to 100 feet in height so it is not a suitable tree for a small yard. However, in the right situation it can be a spectacular specimen that both people and birds gravitate to. Bloom time: April to May

Culture

This deciduous tree provides garden interest throughout the year: flowers in racemes in spring, fresh green leaves in summer turning a lovely yellow-orange in fall, and a striking silloutte of branches in the winter. The open, spreading structure of big-leaf maples can be enhanced by pruning out the lower branches.

California Native Plant Society - North Coast Chapter
P.O. Box 1067 Arcata, CA 95518-1067
Last updated February 4, 1997