The Red Maple A Hardwood Tree

The red maple occupies one of the largest eastern north south ranges in north america from canada to the tip of florida.

The red maple a hardwood tree.

Most hardwood trees are deciduous trees which lose their leaves annually like elm or maple. The red maple or acer rubrum is classified as a soft hardwood tree. The red maple is best grown in soil that has a ph of neutral to acidic in the range of 3 7 to 7 0. Unlike most other hardwoods the sapwood of maple lumber is most commonly used rather than its heartwood sapwood color ranges from almost white to a light golden or reddish brown while the heartwood is a darker reddish brown.

The trees have broad leaves rather than needle like leaves. A few well known hardwood species are oak maple and cherry but many. In the united states red maples are widely disbursed. The red maple ranges from southeastern manitoba around the lake of the woods on the border with ontario and minnesota east to.

Softwood comes from a conifer cone bearing or evergreen trees such as pine or spruce. In fact about 40 percent of american trees are in the hardwood category. The texture and density of the wood a tree produces puts it in either the hardwood or softwood category. Red maple can also be seen with curly or quilted grain patterns.

America s forests contain hundreds of different hardwood tree species. The silver undersides of its leaves not only give the silver maple its name but also lend the tree a shimmering silver appearance in the breeze. Putting organic mulch around the tree can also aid in holding in moisture. Silver maple this tree is close behind the sugar maple in terms of being the most prolific tree in north america.

With leaves that look very similar to the sugar maple the silver maple s leaves are thinner with more defined points. They produce a fruit or nut and often go dormant in the winter. The wood is heavy and soft which makes it ideal for commercial uses such as making furniture pallets and crating. Grain is generally straight but may be wavy.

Red maple trees should be planted in a location in full sun and ample moisture in the soil. Now it may look like hard maple is heads and tails above the rest and to a certain extent it is but for reference black cherry has a janka hardness of 950 lb f the same as red maple and black walnut is rated at 1 010 lb f also note that black maple not pictured isn t quite as hard as its close relative hard maple and ranks in the mid range with a hardness of 1 180 lb f. Forest service recognizes it as the most abundant native tree in eastern north america. A sugar maple s wood is the most dense of all maple wood and is used frequently in furniture and flooring.