Boxelder Maple
Acer negundo
Family:
Soapberry (Sapindaceae)
AKA:
Ash-leaf Maple, Box Elder
Photo taken on:
September 25, 2009
Location:
Bandelier National Monument, NM
Life Zones:
Plains to foothills
Habitat:
Moist areas, stream banks
A tree growing 30 to 60 feet tall with a grayish-brown
furrowed trunk. Unlike most maples which have a single lobed leaf, the leaves are divided into three
lobed leaflets. Young leaves are soft and velvety. Leaves turn yellow in
the fall. Female flowers mature to a one-seeded samara with a pair of
curved wings. When it dries and drops from the tree, it rotates like a
helicopter.
Photo taken on:
May 9, 2021
Location:
Tierra Azul Acequia, Abiquiu, NM
Male and female flowers grow on separate trees. Tiny yellow-green or pink flowers with long drooping stalks bloom just before the leaves open. The photo shows male pollen-producing flowers.