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Freeman’s Maple (Acer x freemanii)

Common Name: Freeman’s Maple
Scientific Name: Acer x freemanii
Other Names:

Leaf: Deciduous, simple, opposite, toothed; 3 to 5 lobes (usually 5) per leaf with deep notches between lobes (usually not as deep as silver maple); silvery below; fall colour red to yellow.
Flower: Small red in ball-like clusters; early in spring.
Fruit: Fruit in samaras (maple keys), in clusters; yellow-brown at maturity from April to May.
Twig: Twigs brown-red; buds red in winter.
Bark: Gray; young bark smooth and thin; mature bark slightly furrowed.
Wood: Much like red and silver maple; soft, heartwood lighter coloured than sapwood, uniform and fine texture; wood is lighter, softer, and weaker than hard maples such as sugar and black maples.

Facts About This Tree:
1. Small to medium sized tree growing 12-18m tall. Lives about 80 years.
2. This tree is a hybrid of red maple and silver maple. Edward Murray named this hybrid cross in 1969 in honor of Oliver M. Freeman.
3. It is often planted in urban environment because of its ascending branch habit, rapid growth rate, tolerance of most soils, no serious insect or disease problems, and beautiful fall color.
4. The identification of Freeman’s Maple has been largely based on the opinions of trained botanists and horticulturists because of the high degree of morphological variability of the tree itself and within both parental species, and the lack of knowledge of the particular parent trees involved in the cross. According to Journal of Arboriculture (1993), there are no foolproof criteria (both morphological and non-morphological) that can be used to distinguish Freeman’s Maple from its parent species.
5. Its soft wood can be used to make pallets, boxes, veneer, and wooden ware.

Lat, Long: 43.7835207, -79.5913298
Diameter (DBH): 12.4 cm
Last Year Modified: 2015
Carbon Stored in this Tree: 23.29 kg of C
Equivalent CO2: 85.4 kg of C

Find more trees in Woodbridge.

Reference
1. Frank S. Santamour Jr. 1993. Freeman Maple – Illusions and Truth. Journal of Arboriculture 19(4): July 1993. retrieved on Aug 2014 from http://auf.isa-arbor.com/request.asp?JournalID=1&ArticleID=2564&Type=2
2. Utah State University. Year Unknown. TreeBrowser – Maple, Freeman. retrieved on Aug 2014 from http://www.treebrowser.org/index.cfm?action=details&key=599
3. Missouri Botanical Garden. Year Unknown. Acer x freemanii ‘Jeffersred’ AUTUMN BLAZE. retrieved on Aug 2014 from http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=c789
4. Timberline Gardens. Year Unknown. Catalog-2014-Deciduous-Trees-1. retrieved on Aug 2014 from http://www.timberlinegardens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Catalog-2014-Deciduous-Trees-1.pdf
5. Photo credit: Daniel J. Kim; University of Guelph (Brian Lacey), retrieved on Aug, 2014 from http://www.uoguelph.ca/arboretum/thingstosee/trees/freemansmaple.shtml