Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Rosids: Malvids: Sapindales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Acer pensylvanicum
FAMILY
Sapindaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
You may also want to check Trees, Shrubs, and Woody Vines of North Carolina
Read more about Striped Maple at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Acer pensylvanicum
FAMILY
Aceraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 115-01-003:
Acer pensylvanicum FAMILY Aceraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Acer pensylvanicum
COMMON NAME:
Striped Maple, Moosewood
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
Manual of the Trees of North America (Exclusive of Mexico) (Sargent, 1905) mtna_i_718
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_acpe_001_lvd
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_acer_pensylvanicum_2
January
)
JK Marlow jkm060429_111
April Macon County NC
Nantahala National Forest: Wayah Ranger District
)
JK Marlow jkm120426_692
April Yancey County NC
Blue Ridge Parkway
The prominently striped bark of this common, mid-elevation understory tree is unmistakable, per Weakley's Flora (2022).
)
JK Marlow jkm120426_722
April Yancey County NC
Blue Ridge Parkway
Flowers appear after leaves, in slender drooping long-stalked racemes, per The Native Maples of Georgia (Ware, 2003).
COMPARE
flowers of Maple species
)
JK Marlow jkm170413_568
April Sevier County TN
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
)
JK Marlow jkm160504_352355
May Jackson County NC
Panthertown
Pistillate flowers on left; staminate flowers on right.
)
JK Marlow jkm230525_3489
May Haywood County NC
Blue Ridge Parkway
Blades broadly 3-lobed, sinuses V-shaped, lobe tips long-pointed, per Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007).
COMPARE
leaves of Mapleleaf Viburnum and Maple species
)
Keith Bradley kab_a_pensylvanicum_73471
May NC
Blue Ridge Parkway
)
Keith Bradley kab_a_pensylvanicum_73479
May NC
Blue Ridge Parkway
)
JK Marlow s040503_b
May Haywood County NC
Corneille Bryan Native Garden
The leaves have doubly serrate margins, per Fall Color & Woodland Harvests (Bell & Lindsey, 1990).
)
JK Marlow s060521_a
May Macon County NC
Highlands Biological Station
Leaves finely serrate (5-10 teeth per cm), per Weakley's Flora.
COMPARE
leaves of Mountain Maple and Striped Maple
)
Sam Pratt sbp_3204
May Spartanburg County SC
In cultivation
)
Sam Pratt sbp_3207
May Spartanburg County SC
In cultivation
)
JK Marlow jkm060805_231
August Haywood County NC
Blue Ridge Parkway
The familiar double samara is 3/4" long, with thin, widely divergent wings, per The Native Maples of Georgia (Ware, 2003).
)
JK Marlow s050916_a
September Rutherford County NC
)
JK Marlow jkm0310g_23
October Haywood County NC
Corneille Bryan Native Garden
)
JK Marlow jkm0310g_25
October Haywood County NC
Corneille Bryan Native Garden
Unusual bright green bark with conspicuous pale longitudinal stripes, per Trees of the Southeastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1988).
)
JK Marlow s071104_a
November NC
Roadside
Fall leaves are uniformly golden yellow, per Fall Color & Woodland Harvests (Bell & Lindsey, 1990).
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Acer pensylvanicum
FAMILY
Sapindaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Acer pensylvanicum
FAMILY
Aceraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 115-01-003:
Acer pensylvanicum
FAMILY
Aceraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Acer pensylvanicum
12
Tree
Perennial
Monoecious
Habitat: Dry to mesic forests, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common in NC, uncommon in GA, rare in SC
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
DOES THE PLANT HAVE "MILKY SAP"?
Does not have milky sap
LEAVES:
Deciduous
Simple
Opposite
FLOWER:
Spring
Yellowish-green
Radially symmetrical
5 sepals
5 petals
Unisexual
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Schizocarp composed of two 1-seeded samaras
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Gardening with the Native Plants of Tennessee (Hunter, 2002) p273
- Great Smoky Mountains Wildflowers (Campbell, Hutson, Sharp, & Hutson, 1962) p030
- How to Recognize Shrubs (Grimm, 1966) p179
- Identifying Trees: An All-Season Guide to Eastern North America (Williams, 2007) p266
- Landscaping with Native Trees (Sternberg & Wilson, 1995) p046
- Native Shrubs and Woody Vines of the Southeast (Foote & Jones, 1989) p085
- Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007) p056
- The Sibley Guide to Trees (Sibley, 2009) p344
- Trees of the Southeastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1988) p089
- Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance) p14
- Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011) p221
- Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004) p046
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
Or, to minimize chances of a misspelling, try just "Carex le".
Less is more: If "pencil flower" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "pencil".