bigleaf maple (Oregon maple)
Sapindaceae (Horse-chestnut family)
(Previously in Aceraceae)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Introduction
Big-leaf maple is a large forest tree that reaches heights of 90 ft. or more. It abundantly self-seeds throughout our region.
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Species Information
General:
Large, deciduous, spreading tree up to 30 m tall; branches greenish barked, smooth; older bark greyish-brown, ridged and often covered with lichens and mosses.
Leaves:
Opposite, 10-30 cm wide, deeply 5-lobed, tips abruptly sharp-pointed, dark green above and paler green below, turning yellow in fall, stalks with milky juice when cut.
Flowers:
Inflorescence racemose with male and female flowers on the same plant; numerous on short stalks, appearing with or before the leaves; petals greenish-white,
Fruits:
Winged, in pairs, 3-6 cm long, yellowish-brown, hairy, pairs attached in a V-shape.
Illustration
If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.
Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia
USDA Species Characteristics
Flower Colour:
Yellow
Blooming Period:
Mid 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) |
156 | 0 | 880 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
17 | 0 | 194 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
138 | 10 | 360 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
4 | 0 | 7 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
D | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
645 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
CWH | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
CDF(180), CWH(403), IDF(26) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
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Habitat and Range
Moist to mesic forests and open slopes in the lowland and montane zones; common in SW BC west of the Coast-Cascade Mountains; S to CA, disjunct in ID.Status Information
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 |