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Black maple tree, Acer nigrum, at the University of Kentucky Arboretum
  • Black maple tree, Acer nigrum, at the University of Kentucky Arboretum
  • Flag of the United States, country of origin
Black Maple

Ornamental · Black maple

Black Maple

Acer saccharum subsp. nigrum, often listed as Acer nigrum

Native black maple shade tree from Midwest seed

$99.00
Container

Live plant sales are dormant for winter. Pickup returns April 1, 2027.

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Local pickup only in Cumming, Iowa, April 1 to October 1, by appointment. Plants do not ship. Details

  • Guaranteed true to name
  • Inspect at pickup; decline it for a full refund
  • All sales final. Policy
Hardiness
USDA zone 3 to 7
Pollination
Wind-pollinated. Male and female flowers on the same tree, so a single tree sets seed
Ripens
Ornamental, grown for fall color. Seeds are not a food use

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At a glance
Type
Native deciduous shade tree
Size
60 to 75 feet tall, 40 to 50 feet wide (Morton Arboretum). Slower growing than sugar maple
Format
A seed-grown Black Maple in an air-pruned container. On its own roots. Each seedling is genetically unique.
In bloom
Small yellow-green flowers, April to May
Light
Full sun to full shade (Morton Arboretum)
Watch for
More prone to leaf tatter than the best sugar maple selections (Trees and Shrubs Online)
Origin
Flag of the United States, country of originMidwest United States. Grown from seed from USDA germplasm collections and from our own harvests of wild black maple across the Midwest
Source
Grown from seed from USDA germplasm collections and our own harvests of wild Midwest black maple
Native status
Native to central and eastern North America, including Iowa
Identification
Leaves usually three-lobed with drooping edges and small leafy stipules at the base of the stalk

Rarity score

How we score rarity

About this variety

Black maple is the sugar maple's darker, tougher cousin: a long-lived native shade tree with a dense, rounded crown, dark furrowed bark and yellow to orange fall color. The Morton Arboretum now treats it as a subspecies of sugar maple. Trees and Shrubs Online, drawing on Dirr and Warren's The Tree Book, describes it as the more heat- and drought-tolerant of the two, shade tolerant, slower growing and long-lived.

Every tree is a seedling, genetically distinct from its neighbors, from Midwest parent trees adapted to our winters and summers.

Before you plant one. This is a tree for a generation. Give it room, well away from the house.

Black maple, Acer saccharum subsp. nigrum.

Growing

Growing guides: Pollination Choosing natives and ornamentals Planting Winter Injury

Where it came from

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors

Verified. Checked against a primary source. How we grade our records

What arrives

Container sizes

Two deep air-pruned container sizes drawn to one scale, with a 12 ounce can for comparison
A, Medium, 3 by 8 in. B, Large, 4 by 14 in. C, a 12 oz can, for scale. Exterior dimensions, width by depth, drawn to one scale. Plant height varies by plant.

Parts of the plant

Line drawing of a seed-grown plant in a deep air-pruned container, with numbered parts
  1. Stem. The whole plant grew from one seed. There is no graft.
  2. Root collar. Plant it at the soil surface, at the depth it grew.
  3. Taproot and laterals. The deep container keeps the main root straight.
  4. Air-pruned container. The plant comes in the container it grew in.

Drawing not to scale. Planting guide

Pickup, shipping and policy

Pickup

Usually ready 2 to 4 days after you order; we email you to set a time.

Inspect at pickup

Look it over when you collect it. If you do not want it, leave it and that item is refunded in full.

All sales final

Every plant leaves here correctly labeled and true to name. Cancel before pickup for a full refund. Full policy

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