It’s finally spring in Ontario, and the leaves are showing on trees along our streets!
Many people mistake the reddish-coloured leaves of the NON-NATIVE Crimson King Norway Maple, thinking it’s a Red Maple.
In fact, the NATIVE Red Maple has green leaves in spring and summer, it’s only red in the fall.
We had a few nights with below freezing temperatures last week, but that didn’t slow up one of our earliest spring bloomers. Red Maple (Acer rubrum) started blooming in early April and this bit of cold wasn’t enough to interfere with seed development on these trees in central and southwestern Ontario.
The flowers start out as tight red buds, often appearing as clusters on dwarf shoots on last year’s reddish-brown twigs, adding a bit of colour to the twigs, even before they bloom. They are conspicuous, visible from the ground, even on large trees. As the buds expand, exposing the flowers, the tree canopy takes on a subtle red hue, before any leaves begin to unfurl.
Both male and female flowers can be found on the same tree, a condition called ‘momoecious’, but the most common occurrence is for trees to have only all male or all female flowers – called ‘dioecious’. They don’t look the way you expect flowers to look; they look like little red (or red and yellow) pom-poms.
The male trees bear pollen-laden flowers; the female flowers will develop into red, winged samaras (seed) when pollinated. Pollination is primarily by the wind as there are very few natural pollinators present at this time; but honey bees do visit red maple trees.
In early May, as the male flowers fade and wither on some trees, red maple seed begins to form on adjacent trees. After the flowers are pollinated, the female flowers produce tiny, pinkish-red samaras, that dangle on long ‘pedicels’ (stalks). The masses of these gives the trees the appearance of still being in bloom.
Within a few weeks, they develop into paired samaras with colours ranging from pale green with a pinkish margin on some trees to other trees having bright red samaras. Depending on the spring weather we get, the seed will be fully mature by the end of May to early June.
The colour of the seed samaras (2.0-3.0 cm long) change to a pale reddish brown to straw brown at maturity. The pedicels that connect the samaras to the tree then become dry and brittle. Within a few days, the seed will begin to fall from the tree or be dispersed by the wind.
Red maple is so-named for its red winter twigs and buds, red flowers and for its tendency to have red summer petioles and vibrant red fall foliage.
Maple Leaves Forever is happy to announce the appointment of our new Executive Director, Deb Pella Keen.
“I’m very pleased that we have found someone as highly qualified and committed to trees and the environment as Deb Pella Keen, to lead Maple Leaves Forever into the future. I will continue to be involved with the organization, with more of the responsibility for our operations moving to Deb going forward” Maple Leaves Founder Ken Jewett said about the recent appointment.
Deb is an experienced senior executive, having worked with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry and the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change throughout central Ontario. She was also Director of the Niagara Escarpment Commission, a provincial agency that works to preserve the Niagara Escarpment.
Deb continues to pursue her passion for environmental stewardship as Board member of the Oak Ridges Moraine Land Trust. She was also a member of the Canadian Council for UNESCO’s Man and Biosphere Committee and continues to work with the Landscape of Nations 360° Indigenous Education Initiative and Plenty Canada, a non-profit that promotes social justice and environmental protection in the lives of Indigenous peoples in Canada and around the world.
Deb holds a Bachelor of Science (Forestry) from the University of Toronto and enjoys exploring the out of doors by foot, paddle, bike or skis with family and friends.
Maple Leaves Forever looks forward to working alongside Deb to support and encourage the planting of Native Canadian Maples. Welcome to the team!
Distinguishing tip:
Break a Norway maple leaf petiole (stem) and the sap is white. Break a Sugar Maple petiole and sap is clear.
Some maples exhibiting premature leaf colour change. Note the other healthy (green) maples.
Our Tree Guy answered a call from a concerned landowner with a tree problem. Several of the maple trees that lined his laneway were showing an out-of-season ‘fall-like’ colour change.
Premature leaf colour change is a reliable indicator of failing health.
First thoughts were that the trees were suffering from extreme drought stress. The trees hadn’t been watered this year. Trees that don’t get enough water, or are stressed for other reasons may stop producing chlorophyll causing the other pigments within the leaves to begin to show.
Further examination revealed the cause of the stress.
Severe damage to base of tree trunk caused by string trimmer. The bark at the base of the tree has been stripped away, exposing the xylem tissue.
Routine property maintenance included the use of a string trimmer to cut the grass around the trees. Repeated use of the string trimmer had completely cut through the bark at the base of the trees that were showing the leaf colour change.
The”xylem” tissue, found under the bark, was exposed and had been damaged as well, reducing the tree’s ability to move moisture and nutrients from the roots to the rest of the tree.
A less severely damaged maple showing random leaf colour change
Five of the 22 trees were damaged beyond saving and will be expensive to replace. Several others will require attention to avoid additional losses.
An action plan was discussed. References were provided to help the landowner as he begins to make repairs to the remaining trees and attempts to improve their health.
Watch for signs of drought stress like the browning of the leaves on this young maple tree.
Southern Ontario frequently experiences hot, dry conditions during the summer months. When drought conditions are prolonged, these dry conditions can have a negative impact on our rural landscape. Deep rooted species like oaks have a higher tolerance of drought than more shallow-rooted species like sugar maple, that can suffer temporary or permanent damage.
Drought periods that occur during the long-day months of June and July are more damaging than those in August and September because of increased day length. Dry summer breezes also contribute significantly to drought stress.
Close-up of leaf browning – sapling is showing signs of drought stress.
WHAT TO DOIt is important to apply enough water to thoroughly wet the root-zone to a depth of 25-30 cm
Trees planted in the past 2-3 years, especially those planted on exposed sites, are more sensitive to drought than older trees. Their roots often struggle to replenish the moisture lost through transpiration from the leaves.
References:
Planting Container-Grown Native Maples
Maple Leaver Forever (2017), www.mapleleavesforever.ca Toronto
Watering Tips for Drought Conditions [PDF]
University of Maryland, 1000 Hilltop Cir, Baltimore, MD, 21250, Extension, HG 85, rev 2010
A note from one of our rebate recipients:
Wilting leaves on a customer’s maple tree
I talked with our friends at Maple Leaves Forever last week when the leaves on one of the sugar maples I planted along my laneway three years ago took on a wilted appearance. What’s up?
I live and work in the city and escape to my farm on the weekends, so the ability to water my trees is limited.
I used to spend most of Saturday watering trees with a hose or buckets from a tank on my Gator.
I lost 7 trees to drought stress in 2016. Replaced them with container grown trees in 2017 and tried to keep the replacement trees and the remaining originals watered as best I could.
Still lost 2 of these and 2 more from the original planting in 2017. Trees need water to survive.
Wilting maple on the landowner’s laneway
Maple Leaves Forever suggested I get some ”tree watering bags” for the trees I planted this year and to continue to water the trees I planted in 2017. It takes 2 – 3 years for a tree to grow new roots and get established in their new environment. They said the older trees should be watered every week to ten days during hot, dry weather conditions.
Tree watering bags are available from several sources with brand names like “Treegator” and “Oasis”. They can be a savior for absentee landowners.
Lessons learned.
– Anonymous
Our tree expert Carl Mansfield replies:
Several brands of tree watering bags have come onto the market the past few years. Treegator® patented the concept.
Below are pics of the two most popular slow-release tree watering bags available here in Ontario. Prices range from $24.99 for Oasis at CTC to $29.99 for the Treegator Original Tree Watering Bags at Amazon.ca (cheapest price from several suppliers). These bags have a maximum capacity of 20 US gallons (75.7 L) and empty their contents over a 4 – 6 hour period with no run-off or evaporation.
A commonly used formula suggests a recently planted tree needs 10 gallons of water per week for every 1 inch of tree caliper, so be careful not to overfill these bags when watering smaller caliper trees.
OASIS bag available at CTC – photo taken at MLF farm.
TREEGATOR watering bag
And here’s a DIY tree watering option that we have shared with a few MLF customers!
watering trees with buckets
watering trees with buckets
They may not be as aesthetically pleasing as the green tree watering bags but they are as durable, and can have a comparable slow-release rate. With a capacity of 5 US gallons (19 L), a 1 inch caliper tree needs 2 buckets of water per irrigation with the second bucket being placed opposite the trunk position of the first bucket. Material cost – $7.00 per bucket.
This year’s Ontario Envirothon theme was CLIMATE CHANGE
University of Toronto Schools Takes First Place in Ontario’s Largest Environmental CompetitionWATERLOO, ON, May 31, 2018 /CNW/ – More than 120 high school students from across the province took part in the 2018 Ontario Envirothon, an intensive multi-day competition held at the University of Waterloo.
U of T Schools – First Place Winners of Ontario Envirothon received a total of $2,500 in prize monies: $1,000 for the school plus $300 per student.
Emad Ali, of Maple Leaves Forever, addresses the contestants
This year, University of Toronto Schools won first place out of 21 teams, becoming the Ontario Envirothon Provincial Champions. Competitors were tested on their knowledge of aquatics, soils, forestry and wildlife. Markville Secondary School and Waterloo Collegiate placed second and third respectively. The top three winning teams, and their schools, were awarded cash prizes from Ontario Envirothon’s generous sponsor, Maple Leaves Forever.
“Maple Leaves Forever has been a proud sponsor of Ontario Envirothon for the past three years,” says Ken Jewett, Founder of Maple Leaves Forever. “The students that take part in these events are true champions of sustainability.”
2nd place winners – Markville Secondary School received $1,250 in prizes: $500 for the school plus $150 for each student
3rd place winners – Waterloo Collegiate received $750 in prizes: $250 for the school plus $100 for each student
The Ontario Envirothon program is coordinated by Forests Ontario, a charitable non-profit organization. “This event brings together some of the best and brightest students in the province,” explains Rob Keen, CEO at Forests Ontario. “The lessons these students learn go far beyond the classroom. This year’s theme, climate change, is timely. The problems these students are trying to solve reflect issues many municipalities and industries are facing today.”
The Ontario Envirothon is a province-wide competition that celebrates students’ passion for the outdoors and challenges them to work as a cohesive team. The winning teams from Canada’s provincial championships will go on to compete with their American counterparts at the 2018 North American Envirothon Finals, to be held at Idaho State University in Pocatello, Idaho from July 22 – 28, 2018.
This year, more than 400 trees were planted on the University of Waterloo campus for the Ontario Envirothon Legacy Project. The Legacy Project provides a chance for the students to give back to the competition’s host, as well as to the environment. “We love events like this on campus,” said Jean Andrey, Dean of the University of Waterloo’s Faculty of Environment. “Not only is this a great experiential learning opportunity for a new generation of environmentally conscious students, but it will also help reinforce the creek’s banks, keep the water cooler in the summer and provide increased tree cover on campus.” .
Forests Ontario
Forests Ontario is the voice of our forests. Working to promote a future of healthy forests sustaining healthy people, Forests Ontario is committed to the re-greening of Ontario through tree planting efforts on rural lands and in urban areas, as well as the renewal and stewardship of Ontario’s forests through restoration, education and awareness. Visit www.forestsontario.ca or follow us @Forests Ontario.
SOURCE Forests Ontario
For further information: For more information, or to schedule interviews, please contact: Azra Fazal, Communications Officer, Forests Ontario, 416.646.1193 ext. 257, afazal@forestsontario.ca
Mark Cullen and son visited the MLF booth! L to R are Ben Cullen, Emad Ali (MLF’s Marketing expert), Mark Cullen, and Carl Mansfield (MLF’s “tree guy”).
From locongress.com
Maple Leaves Forever joined other green industry professionals attending the 45th annual Landscape Ontario Congress at the Toronto Conference Centre in Toronto January 9th to 11th, 2018. This is recognized as one of North America’s top-rated shows for the landscape and horticultural trades.
MLF Founder Ken Jewett and Tony DiGiovanni, Executive Director of Landscape Ontario. Photo by @TonyDiGiovanni1 on Twitter
With near record attendance of 13,000 visitors and over 600 exhibitors, the Congress provided a great opportunity to reinforce existing relationships and initiate new business connections. Everything was designed to connect with the people you came to see, in an environment geared to your personal and professional success.
Dynamic presentations on timely topics were presented throughout the three day event, while students from Ontario’s leading horticultural and landscape institutes demonstrated their skills with competitive landscape displays.
We talked with many familiar faces and invited newcomers to join our team as we promote the planting of Native Maples across Ontario’s rural landscape.
From locongress.com
Bronze Sponsors of FO Conference 2018, including Maple Leaves Forever. Credit: Forests Ontario on Twitter
Keynote address by Mark Robinson at Forestry Ontario Conference. Photo: @JesseKak on Twitter
Maple Leaves Forever participated in the 2018 Forests Ontario Conference at the Nottawasaga Inn in Alliston on February 9th. More than 400 people attended the event.
Climate change and its “ripple effect” on the environment and society was the focus of the conference.
Throughout the day, speakers addressed the potential impact of Climate Change on Canada’s forests and the ripple effects it may have on everything related to forests, the environment, society and our economy. To introduce the reality of climate change, keynote speaker Mark Robinson from Storm Hunters, showed videos and provided commentary on the increasing regularity and severity of violent storms occurring across the US and Canada.
Guest speakers talked to the challenges of managing our forests and woodlots while climate change occurs and how it will influence the diversity we have become accustomed to. Examples of long term studies showed changes within the forest complex and how some wildlife populations are being impacted – the Canada Jay populations in Ontario are in steep decline; the hybridization of flying squirrels is recognized as their natural ranges overlap.
The survival of some of our native species, including Maples, may be at risk as non-native species migrate into the woodlots and forests of eastern Canada.
The closing topics discussed sustainably managing your forests for Carbon and the challenges government and industry face Navigating Carbon Markets.
Sponsors of FO Conference 2018, including Maple Leaves Forever. Credit: Forests Ontario on Twitter