maple tree forest red leaves

Ontario Native Maple Trees

The Maple Leaf: A Canadian Emblem

canadian minted silver maple leaf coin
A Canadian Minted Silver Maple Leaf Coin

There are over 150 species of maple tree all across the northern hemisphere from Norway to Japan and of course, the Great White North, Canada. Canadians have identified with the maple leaf since the 1700s.  From 1876 to 1901, all of Canada’s coins had a maple leaf on them.  It was cemented as a Canadian symbol with the introduction of the current Canadian flag in 1965. One of these days, we might even get to see the Toronto Maple Leafs winning the Stanley Cup (I can dream ok?).  This famous leaf is inseparable from our Canadian identity and it should come as no surprise that maple trees are one of my most popular sellers for landscaping.

Non-Native Maple Trees

Trees like the Japanese maple are in high demand and you will pay a hefty premium to get one for your garden. If you go down to the waterfront trail in Ajax in the summer, you can see lots of maple trees with dark purple leaves. These are Norway maples.  While, these two trees are beautiful, they aren’t native to our region so they’re less suitable to our climate and soil conditions and they can introduce new diseases and pests to the ecosystem.

This is why I’ve compiled a list of all the maple trees that are native to Ontario with all the information you need to choose the best species for your landscape!

Ontario Native Maple Trees

Maple trees can be found as far north as Newfoundland and Labrador, but in Ontario they generally stick to the Great Lakes and southern regions of the province.  According to the Canadian Wildlife Federation, there are 5 types of maple trees that are native to Ontario:

Moosewood Maple (Acer Pensylvanicum)

moosewood maple acer pensylvanicum

The moosewood maple is Ontario’s smallest maple tree and it’s great if you don’t have a lot of room or just for some variety.  It does well in shade compared to other maple varieties.

Red Maple (Acer Rubrum)

red maple acer rubrum

Also known as the swamp maple, this tree grows best in very wet soil.  It is one of the most abundant native trees in North America.  Red maples have red buds in the spring and its leaves turn a brilliant red in the fall.

Silver Maple (Acer Saccharinum)

silver maple acer saccharinum

Silver maples have the biggest helicopter seeds of all the Ontario maples with wings growing up to 5cm long.  It is fast growing and adaptive to many soil types.

Freeman Maple (Acer Freemanii)

freeman maple acer freemanii

The freeman maple is a naturally occuring hybrid of the red and silver maples.  They have the high growth rate of the silver maple and the beautiful leaves of the red maple.

Sugar Maple (Acer Saccharum)

sugar maple syrup tap acer saccharum

This is the tree that is used for the production of that sweet, sweet, Canadian maple syrup.  Other maples can be used, but as the name suggests sugar maples have the highest concentration of sugar.  This tree is ideal if you love maple syrup and want to try your hand at making it from scratch.

Manitoba Maple

Edit: While doing research for my list of Ontario native deciduous trees, I discovered that Manitoba Maples are actually found in Ontario as well. More info and pictures coming soon!

 Freeman MapleMoosewood MapleRed MapleSilver MapleSugar Maple
Latin nameAcer freemaniiAcer pensylvanicumAcer rubrumAcer saccharinumAcer saccharum
Alternate namesMoose maple, striped mapleSwamp mapleSoft mapleHard maple, rock maple
Hardiness zone3-73-73-93-93-8
Height at maturity12m-18m6m-12.2m25m-30.5m30m-35m30m-35m
Habitat typeAnywhere you can find both red and silver maplesWoodlands (understory)Fields, limy areas, moist woodland, roadsides, rocky areas, sandy areas, shorelines, swamps, thicketsRiparian areas, shorelines, swampsWoodlands (canopy)
Sun needsSunFull shadePartial shade to sunSunPartial shade to sun
Water needsWell drained soilMoist soilDry, moist, or wet soilMoist or wet soilMoist or well drained soil
NotesTolerant of high pH soilsSlow growingSusceptible to droughtSusceptible to insect and fungus damageSusceptible to salt damage

Buy Maple Trees For Your Garden or Landscape

At Carroll Property Services, we reduce your carbon footprint by designing and building native plant gardens. Carroll Property Services will take care of all your tree planting needs from single trees, saplings, adult trees, orchards, and timber stands.  To have native maple trees delivered and planted this fall call us at 289-943-5477.

Early Bird Special – 25% Off Maple Trees – Offer Ends August 31st 2022

As a tree planting and garden service, our prices fluctuate based on market prices, number and type of plants, and many other factors. This means that we can’t give normalized prices on our website with a section for discount codes, but that won’t stop us from giving a great discount to early planners!

Here are the steps for redeeming your early bird discount:

  1. Request a quote before August 31st, 2022. It may take us a few days to write up a quote depending on the size of the project, but as long as you make first contact by the 31st, we will honor your discount.
  2. Don’t mention the Early Bird Special. We want to be as fair as possible and if we knew we had to take 25% off, we would have increased bias when writing an estimate for you.
  3. Get an itemized quote. We will prepare an itemized quote for you with the individual prices of plant material, compost, mulch, fertilizer, delivery, and anything else you need for your dream garden.
  4. Cash in your Early Bird Special. Send an email with the subject line reading “EARLYBIRD”. We will then send you a new quote with 25% discount on all of your maple trees.

Is Maple Syrup Bad for the Environment?

Maple syrup production can have a positive impact on the environment if it is done safely, other wildlife is allowed to thrive, and the syrup is consumed locally.  Planting maple trees on your property can be a good way to reduce your carbon footprint.

While it seems like it’s possible to harvest the sap safely, you can definitely hurt the tree if you tap too far into it or put too many taps on one tree.  The UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT says that maple trees that are harvested for their sap using traditional methods have shown no changes in health.  However, trees that are harvested with modern high-yield methods grow slower. They’re due for a progress report soon and I’m interested to see what they find.

Maple trees that are tapped can still provide food and shelter for animals so having the trees on your property is better than having no trees at all.  Birds like the yellow bellied sapsucker eat the sap and mammals like squirrels and chipmunks eat the seeds.  

Yellow bellied sapsucker
Yelow-bellied Sapsucker

The worst part about maple syrup production is the carbon emissions of getting it from the farm to the consumer.  So if you can’t plant your own maple trees, find a local maple syrup producer.  There is a carbon cost that comes with harvesting maple syrup, but locally-made maple syrup can still lower your carbon footprint if it replaces a sugar product you would otherwise buy from the supermarket.

How to Make Maple Syrup

How to Tap a Maple Tree

The best time to tap your maple tree is in February or March.  Mark your maple trees in the fall so that you can identify them without their leaves. Your tree should also be at least 18 inches in diameter.

Most types of maple tree can be tapped for its sweet, sticky, sap, but sugar maple sap has the highest concentration of sugar.

To tap a maple tree you will need:

  • Mature maple tree
  • Drill
  • 5/16 inch drill bit
  • Tap
  • Tubing
  • Container for collecting sap

Steps for tapping a maple tree:

  1. Drill your tap holes on an angle going up, this helps gravity pull the sap out of the tree.  Never drill your holes deeper than 1 and 1/2 inches or the tree will not heal.  
  2. Lightly hammer your tap into the hole.  The sap should start flowing out of the tap now.
  3. Attach the tubing and direct the sap into your container.

You can put more than one tap in each tree but you increase your chances of killing the tree with each tap.

Turning Sap Into Syrup 

  1. Filter your sap to get rid of any debris
  2. Fill a pot 2/3 of the way with sap
  3. Boil the sap until it’s thick and sticky or until it reaches 104°C
  4. Enjoy your maple syrup on pancakes or in your coffee!

To make a single litre of maple syrup, you need about 40 litres of sap. You can also make syrup with elm trees, walnut trees, and birch trees. Comment below if you’ve ever tried them!

100 Maple Tree Planting Special

As you can imagine, it takes a lot of room to plant 100 trees, especially maples which need lots of breathing room. We don’t recommend this number of maple trees for anyone with less than an acre for planting. We have a network of highly experienced tree planters who will help you start your maple stand.

Maple trees are in high demand as landscape trees and for maple syrup production. This makes them very expensive as far as trees go. However, we want to plant as many trees as possible this year so we want to reward clients who help us achieve this.

For a limited time, we are planting sugar maple saplings for just $13.33 per tree when you buy 100 trees or more.

Now, I know what you’re wondering, and yes, the Early Bird Special applies here too. This means that if you order 100+ maple saplings before August 31st, 2022, you will get your trees planted for only $9.99 a tree!

Call 289-943-5477 for more info. Delivery charges and taxes may apply.

Plant Ontario Native Trees Fall 2022

Early spring or fall are the best times for planting so we are now booking for September 2022. We offer many other types of trees and native plants for your reforestation projects. Whether you need a large number of trees for a windbreak, a timber stand, or a food forest, we will help you with your forest management plan and we will deliver and plant your trees at an affordable rate.

To find out more about how you can actually save money by planting and managing trees, read our blog post on Profitable Habitat Conservation And Forest Management.

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