Acer campestre – Field Maple

Habitat

• hedgerow tree
• native to Europe, Near East and Africa
• a common hedgerow tree in southern England, preferring more alkaline sites there

Habit and Form

• small to medium tree
• deciduous
• very round crown, densely branched
• 25' to 35' tall
• often branches very low to the ground
• medium texture
• resembles a miniature Acer platanoides in habit and form

Summer Foliage

• opposite, 3- to 5-lobed leaves, 2" to 4" wide
• uniform dark green colour

Autumn Foliage

• colours late (end of October), with Acer platanoides
• can be a good, uniform yellow colour

Flowers

• blooms in May
• small, yellow-green flowers in clusters

Fruit

• samaras, 1.25" to 1.75"
• nutlet often pubescent
• pairs of samaras join to form a nearly straight line

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Acer platanoides – Norway Maple

Habitat

• native to Europe
• widely naturalized in the United States

Habit and Form

• medium to large shade tree
• deciduous
• rounded crown, densely branched
• typically 40' to 60' tall, but can reach 90'
• often wider than tall when open grown
• grows rapidly when young
• medium-coarse texture

Summer Foliage

• opposite, 5-lobed leaves, 4" to 7" across
• uniform dark green colour
• milky sap visible when petiole is broken

Autumn Foliage

• often colours late (end of October)
• can be a good, uniform yellow

Flowers

• blooms in April
• numerous small, yellow-green flowers
• showy, especially for early spring

Fruit

• samaras, 1.5" to 2" long
• turn green to tan

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Acer pseudoplatanas – Sycamore

Habitat

• native to Europe and central Asia
• cultivated in Europe for centuries

Habit and Form

• deciduous
• medium to large tree, 40' to 60' tall or more
• upright spreading branches
• oval to rounded outline
• foliage and branching typically dense and compact
• texture is medium

Summer Foliage

• high quality
• opposite, 5-lobed with 2 basal lobes much smaller than the 3 primary lobes
• 3" to 6" across
• dark green above, greenish white on underside
• leathery with impressed veins
• coarsely toothed margins

Autumn Foliage

• generally poor
• yellowish or greenish brown

Flowers

• yellowish green, in May

Fruit

• samaras, 1.25" to 2"
• in pendulous clusters

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Aesculus hippocastanum – Horse Chestnut

Habitat

• native to Greece and Albania
• found in mountainous regions

Habit and Form

• a large, deciduous flowering tree
• texture is medium to coarse
• commonly 50' to 75' tall, but 100' specimens are possible
• upright-oval to rounded form
• almost all specimens I observed were taller than they were broad
• lower branches hang down with branch tips turning upward

Summer Foliage

• opposite,palmately-compound with 7 leaflets
• each leaflet is 4" to 10" long and obovate with an acuminate tip
• leaves are light green as they unfold and turn dark green at maturity
• veins are impressed in the leaflets making them appear corrugated
• leafs out early

Autumn Foliage

• poor yellow or just brown
• often leaves are so scorched and blotched that good fall colour is not possible

Flowers

• very showy, reaching a peak in mid-May
• white with a blotch of yellow and red colour at the base
• terminal panicles, 5" to 12" long and 2 to 5" wide

Fruit

• 2" to 2.5" diameter capsules with 1 or 2 seeds
• has a dehiscent, spiny husk, light brown in colour

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Alnus cordata – Italian Alder

Habitat

• scrub and riverbank tree
• native to Europe, Near East and Africa
• a common hedgerow tree in southern England, preferring more alkaline sites there

Habit and Form

• small to medium tree
• deciduous
• very round crown, densely branched
• 25' to 35' tall
• often branches very low to the ground
• medium texture
• resembles a miniature Acer platanoides in habit and form

Summer Foliage

• deciduous, simple glossy leaves
• alternate leaf arrangement
• leaves are 2" to 4" long and 3" to 4" wide
• rounded leaf shape
• crenate leaf margin
• dark green leaf colour

Autumn Foliage

• colours late (end of October), with Acer platanoides
• can be a good, uniform yellow colour

Flowers

• blooms in May
• small, yellow-green flowers in clusters

Fruit

• samaras, 1.25" to 1.75"
• nutlet often pubescent
• pairs of samaras join to form a nearly straight line

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