Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
Bigleaf Maple
The Bigleaf Maple or Oregon Maple (Acer macrophyllum) is a large deciduous tree to 35 m tall. It is native to western North America, mostly near the Pacific coast, from southernmost Alaska south to southern California. Some stands are also found inland in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains of central California, and a tiny population occurs in central Idaho.
It has the largest leaves of any maple, typically 15-30 cm across, with five deeply-incised palmate lobes. The flowers are produced in spring in pendulous racemes 10-15 cm long, greenish-yellow with inconspicuous petals. The fruit is a paired winged samara, each seed 1-1.5 cm diameter with a 4-5 cm wing.
In the more humid parts of its range, as in the Olympic National Park, its bark is covered with epiphytic moss and fern species.
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