How to Grow Acer negundo Plants in your Garden

Acer negundo Growing and Care Guide

• Scientific Name: Acer negundo
• Common Name: Box Eelder, Ashleaf Maple.
• Growing Zone: USDA plant hardiness: 2 to 10. UK RHS H6 - Hardy throughout Europe.
• Life Cycle / Plant Type: Deciduous Tree.

Plant Details

• Plant Height: 30 to 50 feet (9 to 15 m).
• Plant Spread:25 to 43 feet (8 to 13 m).
• Time of Bloom: Early and mid-Spring.
• Flower Details: Yellow-green. Clusters. Dioecious - Male and Female flowers on different trees. Female flowers are deemed messy.
• Leaf Foliage: Light and Medium Green. Odd-pinnate, compound. Thrre leaflets.
• Fruit: Samaras, autumn.
• Growth Form: Columnar and Upright with a Rounded Crown.

Ideal Growing Conditions

• Best Light Conditions: Full sunlight for best results, will grow in partially shady conditions but not full shade.
• Rate of Growth: Quick, vigurous. Takes about 10 to 20 years to gain full height.
• Suitable Soil Types: Chalk, Clay, Loamy, Neutral.
• Soil Moisture: Moist and Wet soils.

Caring Conditions

• Care: Low maintemace tree, may require the odd light pruning to keep tidy and remove decayed tissues. Remove any saplings that appear close to housing or in the proximetry of other established trees.
• Level of Maintenance: Low.
• Propagation: From Seed or by grafting.
• How to Prune: Requires little to no pruning. In some cases hard pruning can be disruptive.
• Tolerates: Grows well in polluted areas, tolerant of drought, clays, and juglone based competition from Black Walnut.
• Pests: Aphids, borers, and horse chestnut scale are sometimes a problem.
• Diseases: Usually disease free but Verticillium Wilt can be problematic.

Further Information

• Can Attract: Boxelder bugs, birds, small mammals.
• Tolerant of: Drought, Clay Soil, Air Pollution.
• Best Garden Use: Often used to add shade to a landscape in cold areas where other shade trees may be difficult to grow. Grows well beside water features. In the control of erosion, Pollard, Woodland garden, Courtyards.
• Genus Detail: Acer
• Further Reading and References: Here and Here

• Family: Sapindaceae
• Closely Related Family members: Sycamore brilliantissimum, Red maple, and Silver maple; Horse chestnut; and Balloon Vine
• Miscellaneous: North American native, Naturalizing, Inconspicuous flowers or blooms. Weak branches can collapse under heavy snows or severe storms. Wood is often used for the creation of boxes. Due to the similarity of leaves, these trees are sometimes referred to as Ash-leaved Maples. Hosts boxelder bugs, which can damage housing.