Maple Saplings

[northside lurker]

I don't know what kind of maples we have here, but they are big, mature fifty and sixty foot tall trees.  I would not call these weed trees at all. I don't think I would rather have any other variety.  Certainly not the wild cherry trees that my grandfather had, with all those little berries getting everywhere.  Also more preferable to the many big pine trees in my yard.  (actually, on Google Earth my house cannot be seen at all.  Its just a big clump of trees that shows up on the satellite imagery!)

I also had no idea that Treez Please was so picky on the variety of trees that they planted.   

Not all maple varieties are considered "weed trees," just the ones that can cause property damage.  The soft varieties, like silver maple, are more likely to break in a storm, have invasive roots like Allan's example, and clog gutters with their flowers and seeds in spring.  Some varieties make great lumber.  Others, like the Japanese maples, are just pretty.  But these other varieties don't have the problems that the "weed" varieties have.

What makes Treez Please picky?

[AllanY2525]

I like Maple trees because of the brilliant colors their leaves yield in the fall...
the only thing I don't like about them are their surface roots.  These can
easily break a foundation wall, and are not attractive to look at.  The maple
in front of my house in Maryland literally crushed the sewer stack from
the house to the street...the other trees in my yard had no effect on it,
however.

[Rick Rowlands]

I don't know what kind of maples we have here, but they are big, mature fifty and sixty foot tall trees.  I would not call these weed trees at all. I don't think I would rather have any other variety.  Certainly not the wild cherry trees that my grandfather had, with all those little berries getting everywhere.  Also more preferable to the many big pine trees in my yard.  (actually, on Google Earth my house cannot be seen at all.  Its just a big clump of trees that shows up on the satellite imagery!)

I also had no idea that Treez Pleeze was so picky on the variety of trees that they planted.   

[northside lurker]

I put three in pots two years ago, and even though I have completely neglected them since then, all three are still alive. 

What kind were they?  Mine was almost definitely a silver maple.  Maybe other varieties are heartier, or I was unlucky?

I'll just continue to enjoy the dozen huge weeds in my yard that shade my house and keep it cool all summer long!

Me too.  The neighbors have a huge maple that shades my yard during late afternoon and evening.  I also have a medium sized maple down by my garage, that looks nice, but serves no other purpose.  Silver maples are considered "weed trees" because their wood is weak, and they are messy. (and make lots of seedlings)

So what trees do they plant?  Might as well plant some pines and harvest them in 30 ears for the lumber.

When I joined Treez Please, they gave me an extensive list of trees that they recommended.  I've misplaced that list, but there were probably at least 50 varieties of trees on it, categorized by size.

Dave Sturtz, the city forester, helped our neighborhood choose the trees that we planted with our Neighborhood SUCCESS grant from the Wean Foundation.  He says it is good practice to have a variety of trees in any area so that, if there is a disease, all of your trees don't die.  I would assume Treez Please has a similar attitude, and would not encourage the planting of maples because they are already so common.

[Rick Rowlands]

I put three in pots two years ago, and even though I have completely neglected them since then, all three are still alive. 

I'll just continue to enjoy the dozen huge weeds in my yard that shade my house and keep it cool all summer long!

So what trees do they plant?  Might as well plant some pines and harvest them in 30 ears for the lumber.

[northside lurker]

I can't speak for Treez Please, but I've heard that maples (silver maples) are considered little more than weeds.

I actually tried to maintain a sapling (pretty sure it was a silver maple) that sprouted in one of my large flower pots.  It survived that summer, and then died that winter.  So, I suspect that most of the saplings that you pull up would probably die anyway.

[Rick Rowlands]

Every year we get a dozen or more Maple saplings sprouting up in our yard.  Might Treez Please be interested in these for replanting around Youngstown?  I hate pulling them out and tossing them when we do our spring planting.