Sugar Maple Tree 40/60cm (2L)

Sugar Maple – Acer saccharum is one of the great deciduous trees of eastern North America, grown for its broad, rounded crown and its reliable display of autumn colour. This young specimen is supplied at 40/60cm in a 2L pot, an ideal size for establishing a tree that will grow with you over many decades, whether planted as a focal point on a lawn, set into a mixed shelter belt or lined out in a woodland-style planting.

The foliage is the main attraction. Leaves are mid to dark green through spring and summer, typically five-lobed with smooth, rounded sinuses between the lobes, and measure roughly 8 to 15cm across on mature growth. As nights cool in autumn the canopy shifts through butter yellow and amber to burnt orange and deep scarlet, often with several shades present on the same tree. Small greenish-yellow flowers appear in hanging clusters in spring, just before or alongside the new leaves, followed by paired winged seeds. The bark starts smooth and grey on young stems, gradually developing into furrowed, plated grey-brown bark on older trunks.

This is the species tapped for maple syrup in its native range, and while British summers rarely produce the sap flows seen in Canada, the tree performs well here as an ornamental where it has room and reasonable soil. It is a long-lived, slow to moderate grower, forming a dense, shapely canopy that casts useful summer shade.

Care Guide

Choose a site in full sun or partial shade with shelter from strong, drying winds, which can scorch the leaf margins. Sugar maple prefers deep, fertile, moisture-retentive but well-drained soil and dislikes thin chalk, heavy waterlogged clay and compacted ground. It tolerates neutral to slightly acid conditions best. Coastal gardens with salt-laden winds are not ideal.

Plant from autumn to early spring while the tree is dormant, avoiding frozen or saturated soil. Dig a hole twice the width of the rootball but no deeper, loosen the sides, and set the tree at the same depth it sat in its pot. Backfill with the excavated soil, firm gently and water in thoroughly. A stake is useful for the first two or three years in exposed positions.

Water regularly through the first two or three growing seasons, particularly during dry spells from May to September, as young maples are sensitive to drought. A 5 to 7cm mulch of composted bark or leaf mould spread over the root area, kept clear of the trunk, conserves moisture and keeps the surface roots cool. Feed in early spring with a balanced general fertiliser if growth is slow or the soil is poor.

Pruning needs are minimal. Remove dead, damaged or crossing branches in late summer or autumn, never in late winter or early spring when the sap is rising and cuts will bleed heavily. Fully hardy throughout Britain, it needs no winter protection once established, though young container-grown plants benefit from a sheltered spot in their first winter.

Ultimate height
Higher than 12 metres

Time to ultimate height
20–50 years

Ultimate spread
8–12 metres

Please note: Decorative pots shown are for display purposes only. Your tree will be supplied in a standard plastic nursery pot shown in the other pictures.