Acer saccharum Marshall. Common name: Sugar Maple, Hard Maple, Sugar Tree. Phenology: Apr-Jun; Jun-Sep. Habitat: Cove forests, other rich forests, especially over mafic and calcareous rocks, on calcareous soils common and typical in dry-mesic forests and dry woodlands as well, less typically extending to high elevation northern hardwood forests where sometimes in acidic situations (as in Highlands County, VA), in parts of the Piedmont perhaps more common as an introduction by ornamental planting than as a native, at least south of VA.
Origin/Endemic status: Native
Taxonomy Comments: Two varieties are sometimes recognized. Var. saccharum is distributed from NS west to ND, south to GA, LA, and OK. Var. schneckii Rehder, with petioles and lower leaf surfaces densely pubescent, considered to approach our area in s. PA (Rhoads & Klein 1993), IN, IL, and MO, is probably only a form.
Other Comments: A. saccharum is the primary source of maple sugar and maple syrup; formerly, commercial sugaring was done in w. NC and w. VA. Large individuals of this species are the favorite substrate of a number of lichens, including Lobaria pulmonaria. The brown, platy bark is often similar to that of Aesculus flava. For its bright orange fall color, A. saccharum is one of our most prized ornamental trees. In NC, it is most common northward and on mafic rocks, thus reaching perhaps its best development in the amphibolite peaks of Ashe, Watauga, Avery, and Mitchell counties; it is more general in VA. Basionym: Acer saccharum Marshall 1785
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native range: eastern North America