skip to main content

ID two maple seedlings?

16 years ago

I've found a few maple seedlings in my yard, and I've potted them so I can raise them in a protected place until they're big enough to plant in one of my beds. But I don't know what kind of maple they are. Can you help me identify them?

{{gwi:382882}} This one I've had since last summer or fall. I'm not even 100% sure it's a maple -- what do you think?

{{gwi:382883}} Last week, I dug up about five of these from a shrub bed. They all look like the same species, and I was wondering where they came from. Then, I had this vague recollection that just MAYBE I threw some leftover Bigtooth maple seeds over there after I couldn't get them to germinate in my basement. But I'm not sure I did. I say Bigtooth maple, because the leaves look different than my Rocky Mountain maple that I grew from seed, which is now about four feet tall. I gathered a bunch of maple seeds up in a nearby canyon, and I'm sure some of them were Bigtooth and some were Rocky Mountain. What do you think it is?

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (2)

Embothrium
16 years ago
Acer negundo
Ribes sp.

Second one looks like it has a mite problem.
stevation
Original Author
16 years ago
Bummer. I don't think I want to grow a box elder. I certainly don't want to attract any more of those darn box elder bugs to my yard!

Now, on the second one, I'm not sure it's a Ribes. The leaves seem too deeply cut to be a Ribes. I have Alpine Currant (Ribes alpinum) growing in my yard, and this doesn't look like that. I've looked at Ribes sp. photos online this morning, and I don't know if this is a match. The online photos show more rounded leaf points than this has. If it was Ribes speciosum, that might be pretty cool, because those have some nice flowers. But I don't think it is. It sure seems to want to grow like a tree, anyway -- it's not branching off like a shrub yet. Maybe that will come.

Any other ideas?
Related Discussions
Korean maple seedling ID
Q
Comments (2)
That's what I thought at 1st but I now think the soil the seeds were planted in was contaminated with a weed seed whos leaves look like a hornbeam maple. The people on the tree forum pointed me in what may be the correct direction. Paul
...See More
Japanese Maple or Red Maple seedling?
Q
Comments (9)
I think you mean Bloodgood, and I'm a bit late to this conversation, but they will look like the picture I am sharing: Or this... Or this... These are all from Acer Palmatum 'Bloodgood' and germinate successfully from samaras (seeds) that get cold stratified naturally (or in a fridge for 90ish days) and then grow into seedlings (shown in all of my pics). You can graft other cultivars (scions) onto these, which would make these seedlings your eventual rootstock (after seedling grows for about 2 years or 1/8 in). Or these seedlings could be used for bonsai, or just planted as is and they would just be considered Acer Palmatum Red Japanese Maple, not a Bloodgood unless it's grafted. Hope this helps (8 years later)!
...See More
Maple ID and Saving Seedlings
Q
Comments (3)
I would go ahead and transplant the maple seedlings now, being careful not to damage the roots. Put them in small containers with good quality potting soil, and keep them in a shady location. Make sure to keep them watered through the summer because small pots can dry out quickly. Trees get hard and harder to transplant the larger they get, so that's why I recommend doing it now. Winter or early spring before leafing out would be better, but you probably wouldn't have noticed them at that time.
...See More
I think I mixed up two batches of seedlings. ID, please?
Q
Comments (3)
Yes, the right one looks like sweet William, Dianthus barbatus, and the one on the left snow in summer, Cerastium.
...See More

Related Stories

TREES 11 Japanese Maples for Breathtaking Color and Form

By Jay Sifford Garden Design

With such a wide range to choose from, there’s a beautiful Japanese maple to suit almost any setting

MATERIALS Woodipedia: Maple Is a Marvel Around the House

By Marci Crestani

A heavy hardwood with lots of potential, maple appeals to modern sensibilities and won't break your budget

GARDENING GUIDES 12 Japanese Maples for a Sunny Garden

By Jay Sifford Garden Design

The right maple in the right place shines in hot summer sun

GARDENING GUIDES 13 Japanese Maples for Shade

By Jay Sifford Garden Design

A surprising variety of these understory trees is waiting to make a statement in your shade garden

KITCHEN DESIGN A Two-Tone Cabinet Scheme Gives Your Kitchen the Best of Both Worlds

By Toronto Interior Design Group

Waffling between paint and stain or dark and light? Here’s how to mix and match colors and materials

MIDCENTURY HOMES My Houzz: Two Decades Hone a Ju-Nel Home to Perfection

By Sarah Greenman

'Well-marinated' renovations turn a 1959 home in Dallas into a comfortable, open modernist wonder

EDIBLE GARDENS Summer Crops: How to Grow Tomatoes

By Marianne Lipanovich

Plant tomato seedlings in spring for one of the best tastes of summer, fresh from your backyard

HOUZZ TV Houzz TV: How to Make and Plant a Veggie Box

By Annie Thornton

See how to start edibles from seed, then transfer the seedlings to a box on stilts to make harvesting more fun

REMODELING GUIDES Your Floor: An Introduction to Solid-Plank Wood Floors

Get the Pros and Cons of Oak, Ash, Pine, Maple and Solid Bamboo

TREES Great Design Plant: Acer Rubrum Brings Shade and Beauty

By Ellen Sousa/Turkey Hill Brook Farm

Red maple — a fast-growing, low-maintenance Eastern native — has spectacular fall foliage and early-spring flowers that feed pollinators

Sponsored

Structural Remodeling

Franklin County's Heavy Timber Specialists | Best of Houzz 2020!

More Discussions

Pruning of young Chinkapin Oak

4

Sassafras Foliar Peculiarity

15

Juniper virginians problem

6

Bigtooth Maple Acer grandidenatum JFS-NuMex 3 Mesa Glow cuttings

1

Acer carpinifolium

0