The sunshine now warming the ground under the maples and their relatives will soon turn to shade, affecting the life of smaller plants and animals around the trunk of the tree.
What to look for:

There are five kinds of maple common in Minnesota: sugar maple, red maple, silver maple, black maple, and mountain maple. All maples have palmately-veined leaves (shaped like your open hand) and opposite branching. See drawings of sugar, red, and silver maple.

Watch in your neighborhood and around school. If you think you are the first person to see this event, ask your teacher to submit your name to the Wolf Ridge website (see table below.)

Where do Sugar Maples grow?
Sugar maples grow throughout Minnesota's forested areas. They are common in the temperate deciduous forests across the central part of the state, but occur only occasionally in the coniferous forests of the north, especially near the Canadian border in the northeastern part of the state.
Why are Sugar Maple leaves emerging a sign of spring?

Plants begin to grow their spring leaves when:

  • the days get longer
  • the temperatures get warmer
  • there is plenty of water
Cool Facts
The leaves that you see growing this spring on the maples have been resting in miniature inside buds on the twigs all winter.
Your arms would have to be over six an a half feet long to reach around the biggest sugar maple in Minnesota.

Sugar maples are the trees of pancake and waffle-syrup fame.
Think About It!
  1. You'll learn about dandelion seeds later this spring. How are maple seeds and dandelion seeds alike?
  2. What do you think makes the leaves grow so fast in one or two days?
Explore the Web
General information
Follow the screens to identify your tree.
Young Naturalists article in the Minnesota volunteer. Teacher's Guide available
From Journey North
From Journey North
Learn more about trees in these Wolf Ridge classes:
You can also take the Trees and Keys class at Wolf Ridge. During Trees and Keys class, you will travel through the trees and keys course, visit trees and see how many you can correctly identify. At the end of class, you will receive a tropical forest tree seed to plant to remind you of the value of maintaining biodiversity.
Explore the world of plants! Learn about how plants live and grow, why they are so different, and how they are alike. How do plants and animals help each other? Depending on the season, you might also make foods, drinks, perfumes, or dyes from the plants you find. More about our Plant Study class.
Date School Town Observer Comments