maple

Maples are typically deciduous with lobed leaves and winged fruit, or keys. They grow throughout the north temperate regions of the world. The leaves are often strikingly coloured in the autumn.

The vivid colours of a maple tree in Japan. There are over 200 different species of the Aceraceae family, and the Japanese variety has been developed over hundreds of years to produce different leaf shapes and colours, and is often used in ornamental settings to provide striking displays of colours such as this.

Silver maple (Acer saccharinum), also known as the soft maple or white maple. The silver maple is one of 110 species of maple. Native to eastern North America, it has a short thick trunk and broad crown. The leaves of the silver maple are light green on top and silvery below, and the distinctive winged fruit is the largest of any maple.

The veins of a maple (Acer) leaf. As in most plants, the leaf is the primary food-manufacturing organ of the maple. The veins act as a skeletal structure and transport materials to and from the leaf tissue. In the autumn, the green chlorophyll breaks down, revealing the striking yellow, orange, and red pigments in the leaf.

Any of a group of deciduous trees with lobed leaves and green flowers, followed by two-winged fruits, or samaras. There are over 200 species, chiefly in northern temperate regions. (Genus Acer, family Aceraceae.)

About 12 species are native to North America. The North American sugar maple (A. saccharum) is a source of maple syrup. A. campestre and A. pseudoplatanus, the sycamore or great maple, are native to Europe.

The European plane tree – sometimes erroneously called sycamore – has been introduced worldwide.