Who doesn’t know what maple is? Maple is a common tree in Russia, it has beautiful curly leaves with five sharp ends. The tree is very picturesque, it is especially noticeable in the fall, when the foliage takes on many shades of golden and red. And when the leaves fall, it is so nice to collect bright autumn bouquets from them.
In this article we will talk about the maple itself, about its features and types, as well as when and when the maple leaf fall begins and on what conditions the timing of this natural phenomenon depends.
Why does the tree need leaf fall?
With the onset of the first signs of cooling in a tree trunk, the delivery of nutrients through the stem vessels slows down. It is in the root system that these substances are stored, and each leaf of the tree is a small laboratory for their production. From the incoming water with mineral substances dissolved in it under the action of photosynthesis (that is, using sunlight), green leaf cells produce everything necessary for plant life.
But here the sun and heat are getting smaller, the days are getting shorter, and the tree, as if realizing that winter is coming soon with cloudy days and frosts, is beginning to store the necessary substances in the root. During the preparation of the plant for winter rest, the leaves change color and fly around. So begins the leaf fall.
Special maple
Maple is in many ways a unique tree. It is frost-resistant, one of the first to wake up in spring, and easily tolerates drought in summer. It is avoided by insect pests common to other trees, they do not like young foliage and bark because of the bitter taste of rodents and moose. That is why maple leaves often remain whole until fall, without flaws and wormholes.
Fans of picking mushrooms know that it is useless to look for them under this tree.
Bees actively fly on a blossoming maple. They like to feast on maple winged seeds and squirrel flowers, a field mouse and some birds such as bullfinches and nuthatch. Seeds, by the way, ripen only in late autumn, when the maple leaves fall, and fall on snowy ground.
Maples look great in parks and gardens - they have a light, thanks to long stalks, quivering crown with curly leaves, beautiful wood color and bright autumn colors of foliage.
From some types of maple (sugar, black, red, holly), maple juice is obtained by cutting the trunk in spring, which is then boiled to syrup. Maple syrup has a special taste. It is often used as an additive to confectionery.
Types of Maples
Maple is widely distributed throughout the earth, mainly in the Northern Hemisphere. In Russia, 20 species of maples grow. The most famous of them: holly (or plane-shaped), Tatar, white, field.
Holly has five leaf blades. Three to five ends on a maple leaf.
In the Far East, Japanese maple is found. It has seven-, nine-pointed leaves and a bizarre bend in the trunk. This species is listed in the Red Book.
Individual instances of maples, for example, white maple, can reach a height of 40 meters, while the usual height of holly maple is 28-30 meters. There are shrubby maples in which individual trunks can be ten-meter high.
Maple leaf fall dates
Maple, as mentioned above, easily tolerates cold. Active dumping of foliage begins after the first frost, and this is the average on September 27. By this time, all maple leaves are already painted in autumn colors.
In October, the time comes for strong leaf fall in most trees. It is impossible to say exactly when the maple leaf fall ends, but usually by the middle or end of the month the tree loses its foliage.
It is clear that the average date is inaccurate. Because if you live in the southern regions, the end of the maple leaf fall may shift for a month or more - and the leaf fall will end only by mid-November. But if in the north - on the contrary, the first frosts can descend into these parts even at the end of August.
Even the time when the maple leaf fall ends depends on the specific winter. It happens that autumn is lingering, cold, frosts come later than usual, and here the leaf fall comes and ends later.
Much depends on the conditions in which the tree grows. For example, in open and flooded or wetlands, a tree loses its leaves faster than in a forest.
It is interesting that the trees growing near street lamps dump foliage later - after all, the daylight hours for them are increased.
Also, the period of leaf discharge depends on the age of the plant. The younger the tree, the later it loses its leaves.
In order to know exactly what “routine” plants and animals live in your area, you need to watch for changes in wildlife. It is informative and interesting.