Class: Magnoliopsida
Origin: Sapindales
Family: Aceraceae
The silver maple is a deciduous tree found in the northern regions of North America, including the St. Michael’s College campus in Vermont. Silver maples are medium sized trees and can grow to be approximately 80 feet tall. Their trunks are short and stout, up to 3 feet wide, and often are divided into several sub-trunks. The bark of young silver maples is a smooth light gray, but as it ages it turns into shaggy strips. Silver maples have a very shallow and fibrous root system. The leaves of the silver maple are its most distinguishing characteristic, due to the silvery white underside of the leaf, its five deep palmate lobes, and the large teeth along each lobe. The design of the silver maple’s leaf prevents wind damage due to the deep lobes, which allow the leaf to blow in the wind without ripping. The topsides of the leaves are light green but in the fall their colors can range from yellow-brown to yellow with a slight reddish tint. The seeds of the silver maple grow in pairs and are called samaras. The samaras of the silver maple are the largest out of all species in its family and can range from 1.5 to 2.5 inches in length. The wing shape of the samaras allows the seed to be easily dispersed by the wind and carried away from its parent tree.
The silver maple produces abundant annual seed crops and provides food for one of St. Michael’s very prominent cohabitants, the gray squirrel. The gray squirrel’s cached food often is depleted by early spring, and this is when they feed on the buds of the silver maple. The seeds of the silver maple are also another source of nutrition for squirrels in the fall.
The silver maple is often planted as an ornamental tree. Its wood is considered soft, and is often used for furniture, boxes, and crates. The sap from the silver maple can be used to make maple syrup.
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