Uses
As a key species in the “Soft Maple” group, Acer rubrum is a commonly harvested timber species. It is used as pulp, veneer, and lumber. While it is less dense than its cousin, sugar maple, it is still more than sufficient for most moderately abusive tasks. Red maples are a good selection for stabilization of creek banks, and provide essential fodder for small game. Those in northern latitudes should also consider planting red maples for use in maple syrup making, with the caveat that red maples have shorter sap run, and marginally less desirable sap.
Wood Characteristics
Red maple has light sapwood, and darker, reddish-brown heartwood. Given the market preference towards lighter shaded woods, the sapwood is more frequently sought after than the heartwood. Working with soft maple is facilitated by its closed pore structure, excepting when using highly figured samples. It has a moderate blunting effect on tools, being slightly harder than African Mahoghany.
Red Maple, with the rest of the soft maple group, is a common source of the quilted and curly figured maples, with birdseye being more common in hard maple. While the cause of these figures is unknown, there are records of replication of curly maples in Europe via grafting.
Propagation
Seeds generally germinate within ten days of drop, and are rarely viable beyond the first year. Given the hardiness and fast growth rate of the species, foresters can consider broadcast seeding into disturbed soils. Barring that option, a bare-root germination bed could be constructed, with the seeds spread liberally and covered with a light soil or mulching mixture. The bed can be excavated and the trees transplanted after the first or second year, depending on the desired size of seedling. 4WM.
The inspiration for Forestry Corner comes in large part from my personal experiences working with my father to manage our wood lot, sawmill, and woodshop. The great woodworkers in history have all had a deep and abiding respect for the medium from which they created their art: wood. More than that, they saw past the wood itself back to the trees from which it came. .
What the Forestry Corner column aims to provide is the story of each species of tree woodworkers encounter on their journey
Every issue we’ll have a new species, complete with scientific name, identification data, propagation data, interesting facts, and of course some information on the wood. more about the trees they touch every time they walk into the shop, and to give them the information they need to plan and plant trees for future woodworkers.
There won’t be a ton of focus on the wood and its characteristics, that’s what www.wood-database.com is for. The real goal is to give woodworkers a chance to learn as much as possible about the trees we work with every day.
Michael Kelley shares his inspiration for Forestry Corner