Douglas maple (Rocky Mountain maple)
Sapindaceae (Horse-chestnut family)
(Previously in Aceraceae)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
SUBTAXA PRESENT IN BC
Species Information
General:
Deciduous shrub or small tree, up to 10 m tall; stems branching, glabrous, young twigs reddish; bark greyish to reddish-purple.
Leaves:
Opposite, 2-12 cm wide, 3- to 5-lobed, glabrous to sparsely glandular short-hairy, coarsely toothed, paler on the lower surface, turning yellow to orange or crimson in fall.
Flowers:
Inflorescence of flat-topped, terminal or axillary clusters of about 10 flowers, male and female flowers on separate or same plants, appearing with the leaves; petals and sepals yellowish-green.
Fruits:
Winged, in pairs, 2-3 cm long, greenish-brown, pairs attached in a V-shape.
USDA Species Characteristics
Flower Colour:
Green
Blooming Period:
Late Spring
Fruit/Seed characteristics:
Colour: Brown
Present from Summer to Fall
Source: The USDA
Ecology
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
| Site Information |
Value / Class |
||
|
Avg |
Min |
Max |
|
| Elevation
(metres) |
936 | 0 | 2500 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
33 | 0 | 235 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
202 | 0 | 360 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
3 | 0 | 8 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
C | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
4774 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
ICH | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
AT(2), BG(58), BWBS(1), CDF(4), CWH(219), ESSF(170), ICH(2257), IDF(834), MS(508), PP(69), SBPS(2), SBS(480) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and Range
Mesic to dry forests and rocky slopes in the lowland and montane zones; common throughout BC, except Queen Charlotte Islands and adjacent coast and NE BC; N to SE AK, E to AB and S to OR and MT.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Acer diffusum Greene
Acer glabrum subsp. diffusum (Greene) E. Murray
Acer glabrum subsp. neomexicanum (Greene) E. Murray
Acer glabrum var. parviflorum E. Murray
Acer neomexicanum Greene
Taxonomic Keys
TAXONOMIC KEY TO ACER
1. Leaves pinnately compound; petals absent ..........A. negundo 2. Flowers 10-50; inflorescence racemose or in panicles; trees up to 30 m tall.
3. Leaves grey, white or purplish below, the stalks without milky juice when cut; inflorescence in long, hanging panicles; fruits glabrous ..........A. pseudoplatanus
4. Leaves lobed beyond the middle, the tips abruptly sharp-pointed; inflorescence racemose; fruits hairy ..........A. macrophyllum 2. Flowers usually less than 10; inflorescence umbellate or corymbose; plants usually shrublike and less than 10 m tall.
5. Leaves 3- to 5-lobed, glabrous to sparsely glandular short-hairy; sepals green.......... A. glabrum |