Red Maples Add Fall Color

Now that cooler weather has arrived, its almost time to enjoy the brilliant fall colors of North Georgia. The maples, hickories, poplars, sycamores, and others blend together to paint a beautiful picture. The combination of reds, yellows and oranges is so pleasing to the eye. I can't think of any better fall color than what we have right here in Georgia.

If you would like to add some fall color to your landscape, now is the time to plant trees, whether ball-and-burlap or container specimens. One of my personal favorites that does well in our area is the Red Maple (Acer rubrum).

The Red Maple is one of the very best trees for the South. It is native, has practically no problems, is relatively fast growing, has strong wood, and has moderately deep roots so growing grass underneath is not impossible until the tree reaches maturity. Red Maples blossoms very early in the spring, and the leaves have excellent fall color. What more can you ask for?

While the Red Maple doesn't grow as fast as the Silver Maple, it is a most valuable tree and worth waiting for. It will provide shade very quickly in its young life because of its branch and leaf density. The Red Maple does not have a central leader all the way to the top, but sets large arching branches from the main trunk. These give the tree a very wide head which will shade a large area.

Be careful not to plant the Red Maple too close to the house or some of these arching branches will have to be removed to prevent damage to the roof. Just plant it a little farther away from the house and all will be just fine.

Red Maples are generally propagated from seed collected from the woods. This gives a tremendous variation in leaf size, form and fall color. Though not a serious problem, it is nevertheless somewhat disappointing when your tree is not as large-leafed or doesn't have the fall color some of them are capable of having.

To remedy this problem, I would highly recommend selecting one of the cultivars of Red Maple which are commercially available. Two of the most commonly available cultivars are 'October Glory' and 'Red Sunset'.

The 'October Glory' Red Maple is an excellent shade tree with lustrous green leaves that are held on the tree longer than most. 'October Glory' has gorgeous crimson fall color. The 'Red Sunset' like the 'October Glory' has a medium to fast growth rate. It has heavily textured summer foliage and brilliant red to yellow fall color.

So if you are considering adding a few trees to your landscape this fall, be sure to include one of the Red Maples. You won't be disappointed. For more information on selection of trees and shrubs for fall planting, access the Extension publication, Landscape Plants for Georgia.

Billy Skaggs Agricultural Agent Hall County Extension Coordinator 734 East Crescent Drive Gainesville, GA 30501 Phone: (770) 531-6988 Fax: (770) 531-3994 Email: [email protected]