Acer pensylvanicum
Origin: Northeast US and Appalachian Mountains, into Eastern Canada
Improvement status: Wild
Seeds per packet: ~25
BOTANICAL SAMPLE - NOT GERMINATION TESTED
Life cycle: Perennial
Moosewood, or striped maple, is a northeast native maple tree that thrives in shade, usually in the understories of mixed deciduous forests, though when an opening appears in the canopy they can sometimes fill it. Moosewood is most well-known for its striking greenish bark with vertical grey stripes, making it ornamental even in winter. This type of maple is known as a "snakebark", and none of the other snakebark species are native to North America. It has broad green leaves (more resembling thimbleberry than most maples) with red petioles.
Striped maple has a long history of medicinal use, particularly among Indigenous peoples. The inner bark is used in the treatment of colds, coughs, bronchitis, kidney infections, gonorrhea, and more. A tea made from the leaves and twigs is used to both stop and encourage vomiting, depending on the dosage. A poultice made from the bark is used for swollen limbs or running sores.
It has light wood that is easy to work. It has long been used for both bows and arrows, as well as bowls, utensils, etc. Another name for the plant is "whistlewood," due to the tradition of carving whistles from the wood.
We got these seeds from the good folks at Sheffield's Seed in Locke, NY.
GROWING TIPS: Fall plant or cold-moist stratify for 120 days to improve germination. Situate in shade or partial shade, though it can usually handle sun as well.
NOTE: Close-up image of bark is from iNaturalist.org user Alex Abair and is used here under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license (and it has been slightly cropped). The images with black backgrounds are from photographer Gilles Ayotte, accessed via Bibliothèque de l'Université Laval, and are shared under the same license. Others are in the public domain.
