Home
Virtual Herbarium
Services
Resources
K-12 Educational Materials
Site Map
 

Acer negundo Linnaeus

Common names: box elder, ash leaved maple, boxelder, Texas box elder, eastern box elder.
Synonyms: Acer negundo Linnaeus ssp. latifolium (Pax) Schwerin, Acer negundo Linnaeus var. negundo, Acer negundo var. texanum Pax, Negundo aceroides (L.) Moench, Negundo negundo (L.) Karst.
Family: Sapindaceae.

Brief description:
A small to medium-sized, deciduous tree usually 15–20 m. (50–65 ft.) tall when fully grown. Bark of mature trunks is furrowed and ridged, sometimes with small plates, becoming deeply furrowed with age. Young twigs are typically green. Leaves are opposite and pinnately compound, most often with 3–5 (occasionally 7–9) leaflets. Leaflet margins usually have scattered, coarse teeth or small lobes, especially on the portion toward the leaf tip, but may also be entire. Male and female flowers occur on separate trees. As with other maples, fruits consist of two, winged samaras that split apart when mature and travel on the breeze as they spin to the ground.

USDA Profile

Herbarium sheet images:
Herbarium sheet image thumbnail Herbarium sheet image thumbnail

Live specimen images:

• Branchlet with leaves • Individual leaf 1 • Individual leaf 2 • Branchlet with buds • Close-up of buds • Close-up of fruits •

Plant Information Center
About PIC | Project Staff | Advisory Panel | Research Activities | Partners | Permissions