Scarlet Maple Fall Color

Scarlet Maple
Acer rubrum
(AY-ser) (ROO-brum)
Synonyms: Swamp Maple, Red Maple

This tree may have saved it's own life with this picture. It is located at the base of the estate near the bank of the lake. Periodically the lake floods about half of the root system. It is a multi-trunk specimen and that is the problem. The trunks are ugly and we have tried to make it look better but that led to a lot of sprouting and that looked worse. The top of the tree has been broken many times including during the October Snow from Hell of last year. I had finally decided to cut it down this spring but then I saw this picture and remembered why I had babying the tree along all these years. It provides a unique and colorful background to the plants planted in front of it.

Often times I am truly jealous of tropical gardeners especially when I see them having stuff year round and growing things like Palm Trees outside. This photo illustrates one of the outdoor pleasures I have that they don't. Everyone should see the New England forest in color. This species of Maple is one of the most populous here and if everything goes right, weather wise, they put on a fantastic show.