Red maple (Acer rubrum)
Leaves
Photos taken May 10, 2008 on Queen Elizabeth Dr, just east of the Bank St bridge.
These red maple leaves have three lobes. The bark is dark with slits, uniform and quite smooth.
The above photo taken May 15, Queen Elizabeth Drive, east of the Bank St bridge.
Here one sees weakly-developed lower lobes, making 5. Often there are three lobes.
I find one of the most useful identifying features of red maple to be the teeth on the vertical
portions of the central lobe. I don't think any other maple has it except perhaps some Amur maple.
Bark
The above photos taken May 15, 2008 - I think on Woodlawn Ave.
May 15, 2008 on Queen Elizabeth Drive, east of the Bank St Bridge.
Young trunks of what I think are red maple seem to be uniformly grey or sometimes almost white.
They seem to become a much darker grey, even while still fairly young.
The above photos taken May 15, 2008 - I think on Woodlawn Ave.
March 21, 2009
This tree shows the transition from light grey smooth bark to cracked dark grey bark.
Queen Elizabeth Dr by Landsdowne Park
Fruit (keys)
Photos taken May 10 and 15, 2008 on Queen Elizabeth Dr, just east of the Bank St Bridge.
These red maple leaves have three lobes.
Buds
March 21, 2009
Buds are red-brown or red.
April 15, 2009
April 17, 2009
Likely hybrid maple
Photos taken on Broadway Avenue at Queen Elizabeth Drive, May 10, 2008. I think these are red maple-silver maple
hybrids. The colour of the keys is red, and they are larger than expected with red maple. The leaves are
silver maple-like. There are cultivated hybrids, such as Autumn Blaze.