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Archive for January 19, 2012

Sugar Maple Buds & Bark

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Maples have what is referred to as “opposite” branching – the buds, leaves and branches are positioned opposite one another. If you look at this photo of the terminal bud of a sugar maple (Acer saccharum) you’ll see that the two lateral buds (on either side of the terminal bud) are directly across from each other.  This is relatively rare in the woody plant world — you’ve narrowed down the identity of a tree significantly if you determine that it has opposite branching (ashes and dogwoods, among others, share this characteristic). The buds of sugar maple are pointed.  The appearance of its bark depends on the age of the tree you’re looking at.  Saplings and younger branches are quite smooth (right branch in photo), whereas the bark of an old sugar maple is furrowed with vertical ridges curled outward along one side (left side of photo).

January 19, 2012 | Categories: Deciduous Trees, January, Plants, Tree Identification, Trees and Shrubs | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment