Southern Sugar Maple

Southern Sugar Maple (Acer barbatum)

Rock Maple, Florida Maple

Full to part sun, moderately moist to occasionally dry; tolerates clay and loam soils, circumneutral to slightly acid pH.

25–40 feet height by 20–35 feet spread; inconspicuous greenish-yellow flowers in early spring before leaf-out; seeds are paired samaras maturing in late summer.

Germination Code C (cold stratification, 60–90 days). Easy from seed.

Native region: Statewide in Tennessee, especially common on the Highland Rim and Middle Tennessee cedar glades and rich woodland margins.

The southeastern counterpart to the northern Sugar Maple, Acer barbatum tops out considerably shorter and handles Middle Tennessee's summer heat far better than its northern relative. Fall color runs more consistently orange-red than yellow, and the leaf lobes are shallower with more rounded sinuses — a useful ID character separating it from Acer saccharum in the field. In Columbia and the I-65 corridor, it naturalizes in moist ravines and open woodland edges where the clay soils stay reasonably cool through summer. Susceptible to anthracnose in wet springs and occasional canker on stressed specimens; good drainage and avoidance of bark wounding at planting are the primary management levers. Sap can be tapped for syrup, though sugar content runs slightly lower than in Acer saccharum.