Sugar Maple Vs Red Maple

Red maple has a highly variable leaf shape and some can look similar to sugar maple but they are easily distinguished by serrations and the color of the leaf underside.

Sugar maple vs red maple. The three lobes of a sugar maple s leaf are separated by smooth u shaped valleys think u as in sugar. Maple syrup is created by tapping the sap lines of a sugar maple then boiling the sap to create maple sugar or syrup. The red maple s lobes meanwhile are separated by serrated v shaped valleys. Sugar maple grows very slowly usually only a few inches a year for the first 3 4 years from seed and then about 12 each year for the next 100 150 years to a maximum height of about 120 ft.

Red maple is also known as swamp maple because it can thrive in wet areas while sugar maple cannont tolerate these conditions. Samaras are also distinctive. Overall this makes the sugar maple s leaves broader and more rounded than the narrower pointier leaves of the red. Famous as the source of maple syrup sugar maple trees can reach 80 feet or more in height with a spread of up to 60 feet.

Red maple is a great choice for parks and large gardens where there is ample room for its root system. In winter buds are easily distinguished. Sugar maples have a fall foliage color range from yellow to orange to red. Red maple likes sunny to partially shaded sites and grows well in a number of soil types although it prefers moist rich well drained slightly acidic soils with a ph of 4 5 to 6 5.

One of the kings of the family the sugar maple is known for its spectacular fall foliage and sweet delicious sap. Red maple leaves are toxic to horses if ingested in quantity. Red maples do not mind getting their feet wet while sugar maples do. Sugar maple is a large deciduous tree known for its brilliant fall yellow orange and red orange color display.

Red maple acer rubrum grows at about twice that rate or about 2 ft. Japanese maple trees are prized for their beautiful foliage. Sugar maple trees acer saccharum should be grown in zones 3 to 8 in an area of your yard that is well drained and gets full to partial sun.