Acer rubrum
Overview
Uses: Lawn and patio shade, street and boulevard plantings, rain gardens and low areas, park and campus settings, fall color focal points.
Benefits: Red flowers that color the bare canopy weeks before anything else leafs out, dependable scarlet fall color, an unusually wide tolerance from wet bottomland to average lawn soil, and moderate to fast growth that delivers usable shade within a decade.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 3–9
Sun: Full Sun, Partial Sun/Shade
Life Cycle: Deciduous Tree
Growth Habit: Upright, Rounded — oval canopy carried on a central leader.
Bloom Color: Red
Foliage Color: Green, maturing to Red in fall
Mature Height: 40–70 feet
Mature Width: 30–50 feet
Bloom Season: Early spring, before the leaves emerge
Growth Rate: Moderate to Fast
Summary
The first real color of spring and the last great color of fall, from the same tree.
Red Maple earns its name three times over. Small red flowers cover the bare branches in early spring, well before most trees show any sign of waking. The winged samaras that follow are reddish. Leaf stems stay red through summer, and in autumn the canopy turns clear scarlet.
The tree itself is upright and oval, with a straight central leader and smooth gray bark that furrows with age. It grows at a moderate to fast pace, which means a young tree begins casting real shade within eight or ten years rather than a generation.
This is also the most adaptable of the eastern maples. In the wild it grows in swamps and on dry ridges alike, and in cultivation it handles periodic flooding, average lawn soil, and city conditions. That range from zone 3 to zone 9 is why it is one of the most widely planted shade trees in North America.
Early flowers are an important nectar and pollen source for bees emerging in late winter, and the seeds feed songbirds and small mammals through spring.
Care
Red Maple Care
Plant in full sun for the strongest fall color; partial shade is tolerated but produces a looser canopy and less intense color.
Red Maple accepts a wide range of soils and prefers moist, slightly acidic ground. It tolerates periodic flooding and heavy soil better than most shade trees. Highly alkaline soil is the main exception and can cause yellowing between the leaf veins.
Water deeply through the first two or three growing seasons. Established trees handle ordinary summer weather well, though the roots are shallow and appreciate a deep soak in extended drought. Keep a wide mulch ring in place, pulled back from the trunk.
Feeding is optional in decent soil. Where growth is slow or foliage is pale, apply a slow release fertilizer in early spring.
Prune in late summer or early fall rather than late winter, since maples bleed heavily from cuts made as sap begins to run. Focus early pruning on establishing a single leader and well-spaced scaffold limbs. Roots are shallow and surface with age, so plan lawn edges and paths accordingly.
Size
What Size is the Red Maple for Sale Online?
Our Red Maple ships in a greenhouse-grade grow pot and is appropriately sized for its container at the time of shipment. If you have specific sizing or planting questions, please contact us.
How Large Does Red Maple Grow?
When mature, Acer rubrum typically reaches about 40–70 feet tall and 30–50 feet wide. Trees in open lawns tend toward the wider end of that range; those in woodland settings grow taller and narrower.
Additional Information
What are some common names for this plant?
- Red Maple
- Swamp Maple
- Soft Maple
How reliable is the fall color?
Seedling-grown Red Maples vary. Most turn a strong red to red-orange, but some individuals lean more yellow, and color intensity shifts with the weather in a given autumn. Named cultivars are bred for consistency; a seedling tree trades a little predictability for genetic diversity.
Is Red Maple a native tree?
Yes, and it has one of the broadest native ranges of any eastern tree, stretching from Newfoundland to Florida and west to Texas. Browse related species in our Native Plants of North America collection.
Can Red Maple handle wet soil?
Better than most shade trees. Its alternate name, Swamp Maple, is well earned, and it copes with seasonally saturated ground and periodic flooding. That makes it a strong candidate for rain gardens and low corners of a property.
How does Red Maple differ from Sugar Maple?
Red Maple grows faster, tolerates wet ground and city conditions far better, and turns red earlier in the season. Sugar Maple is longer lived, casts denser shade, and produces the yellow-orange-red autumn spectrum associated with New England. Both are listed in our Trees collection.
