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| The Sugar Maple is a highly prized tree. Its wood is durable and hard, valued for flooring and furniture. Its grain is attractive and often used for furniture, cabinets and veneer. Occasional abnormalities in the grain allow the wood to be marketed or used as "curly maple." The trees are excellent additions to the landscape for shade and for color afforded by the fall foliage, which is often red and yellow on the same tree. This species is perhaps best known as a source of sugar. Indeed, the tapping of these trees in the early spring for its sap was an art discovered by early native American residents. The pioneers in our country learned how to boil the sap to produce syrup and sugar. The maple syrup and sugar industry is still an important one in New England. Native from eastern Canada to Georgia, Alabama, Missouri and Texas. |