Acer platanoides

Botanical Description

Acer platanoides is a deciduous tree with a dense, symmetrical, rounded crown; it can grow 18 - 21 metres tall, occasionally reaching 27 metres or more[ 11 Title Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Publication Author Bean. W. Publisher Murray Year 1981 ISBN - Description A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures. ]. The tree is sometimes harvested from the wild for local use as a food and source of materials, whilst the wood is also used commercially on a small scale. It is often grown as an ornamental in parks and large gardens and has often been used as a street tree. The Norway maple is a quick-growing tree that has been widely planted in temperate areas. It produces seed freely and has often escaped from cultivation and invaded native habitats. In North American forests where this tree has invaded, understories below its dense canopies exhibit reduced species richness, increased abundances of conspecific seedlings relative to nearby non-invaded areas, declines in native tree regeneration, and seedling pools that are dominated by it. The high proportion of Acer platanoides seedlings indicates that its abundance is likely to increase over time[ 413 Title Global Invasive Species Database Publication Author Website http://www.issg.org/database/welcome/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description Very detailed information on almost 400 species (with more being added) of plants that have become weeds in areas outside their native range. ].