Agroforestry Services: Crop shade  Fodder: Bank  Management: Standard  Regional Crop  Staple Crop: Sugar

Landscape Uses:Firewood, Screen, Specimen, Street tree, Woodland garden. Of easy cultivation, it prefers a good moist well-drained soil but succeeds on most soils[11, 98], though it is more likely to become chlorotic as a result of iron deficiency on alkaline soils. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Trees need full light and a lot of space[98]. This species is one of the most shade tolerant of the N. American maples[226]. It tolerates atmospheric pollution[200] and so is often used as a street tree, though it can suffer from soil compaction and the use of salt on the roads in frosty weather. Tolerates a pH in the range 4.5 to 7.3. Hardy to about -45°c when fully dormant[160]. A fast-growing tree for its first 40 years in the wild[229], this species is not a great success in Britain[1], though it does better than once thought[11]. It grows well in Cornwall[59]. In cultivation it has proved to be slow growing when young[11]. Trees can live for 250 years in the wild[229]. A very ornamental tree[1] but a bad companion plant, inhibiting the growth of nearby plants[18, 20]. This species is commercially exploited in America for its sap[1, 11]. Along with its sub-species it is the major source of maple syrup[11]. There are some named varieties[183]. The sap can be tapped within 10 - 15 years from seed but it does not flow so well in areas with mild winters[160]. Special Features:Attracts birds, North American native, Inconspicuous flowers or blooms. The plant is heat tolerant in zones 8 through 1. (Plant Hardiness Zones show how well plants withstand cold winter temperatures. Plant Heat Zones show when plants would start suffering from the heat. The Plant Heat Zone map is based on the number of "heat days" experienced in a given area where the temperature climbs to over 86 degrees F (30°C). At this temperature, many plants begin to suffer physiological damage. Heat Zones range from 1 (no heat days) to 12 (210 or more heat days). For example Heat Zone. 11-1 indicates that the plant is heat tolerant in zones 11 through 1.) For polyculture design as well as the above-ground architecture (form - tree, shrub etc. and size shown above) information on the habit and root pattern is also useful and given here if available. The plant growth habit is a standard with a non-suckering single trunk [1-2]. The root pattern is flat with shallow roots forming a plate near the soil surface [1-2]. The root pattern is a heart root, dividing from the crown into several primary roots going down and out [1-2].

Carbon Farming

• Agroforestry Services: Crop shade  Plants providing crop shade especially trees.
• Fodder: Bank  Fodder banks are plantings of high-quality fodder species. Their goal is to maintain healthy productive animals. They can be utilized all year, but are designed to bridge the forage scarcity of annual dry seasons. Fodder bank plants are usually trees or shrubs, and often legumes. The relatively deep roots of these woody perennials allow them to reach soil nutrients and moisture not available to grasses and herbaceous plants.
• Management: Standard  Plants grow to their standard height. Harvest fruit, seeds, or other products. Non-Destructive management systems.
• Regional Crop  These crops have been domesticated and cultivated regionally but have not been adopted elsewhere and are typically not traded globally, Examples in this broad category include perennial cottons and many nuts and staple fruits.
• Staple Crop: Sugar  Perennial sugar crops include sugarcane and compare favorably to annuals.