SAPINDACEAE - - Soapberry Family

Acer leucoderme Small — Chalk Maple

Chalk maple (Acer leucoderme) or white-barked maple, is another of the four species in the "sugar" maple group (see Acer floridanum for discussion). Chalk maple is a small to medium sized tree, sometimes multi-stemmed trunk and widespreading, but can have a single trunk with a rounded crown and, like the other "sugar" maples, makes a dense shade. Even with a single trunk it is a shorter tree than the other three species in the group, but can reach 64 feet in height and 1.12 feet in circumference. It is really a beautiful small tree and should be used more in landscape plantings where a larger tree would be too overpowering. The fall color rivals A. saccharum, and is usually a brilliant reddish-orange, whereas A. floridanum is usually yellow. The species name "leucoderme" means "white skin," referring to the young bark.*

*See discussion on bark under A. floridanum.

Separating Characteristics

Seemingly one of the best separating characteristics of Chalk maple from the other three "sugar maples" is it's size and growth habit. It is generally a smaller tree and sometimes does have multiple trunks or branches close to the ground. These trees have a widespreading crown. But, the tree can also have a single trunk and make a medium sized tree. The other good character is the leaves**. While A. floridanum has leaves that are whitish or glaucous (covered with a whitish bloom) beneath, A. leucoderme leaves are light green or yellowish-green beneath and hairy, not at all glaucous. Also, the leaves share a characteristic with A. nigrum, the margins of the leaves have a tendency to droop or curve downward. Now, not all the leaves on a tree will have this trait. My current opinion is that this character is a sun response, e.g. the leaf undersides of some species will have more hairs and other species (such as some hickories) will have a different color, i.e. resin dots will turn a darker color if exposed to the sun. Therefore, it is possible that heavily shaded leaves on A. leucoderme and A. nigrum will be relatively flat like A. saccharum and A. floridanum. Also, the main end lobe of the leaves is usually widest at the base, where A. floridanum is generally widest toward the tip. Not every leaf will display this character, so look at many leaves on each tree. The leaves, at least those on lower and inner branches, tend to dry a tawny color and remain on the tree until spring, reminiscent of beech.

**see the Leaf Comparison Chart on the Acer saccharum page

Habitat

Rocky slopes and bluffs, particularly over mafic or calcareous rock, moist woodlands, mainly along streams or river banks and in ravines, on the Gulf Coast in floodplains.

Habitat information from:
Weakley, Alan S., Flora of the Southern and Mid-Atlantic States, Working Draft of 21 May 2015.

Native Range

A species of se. North America, primarily of the Piedmont from NC to AL, less commonly in the Ridge and Valley of se. TN and especially the Ridge and Valley of GA, low Blue Ridge of w. NC and adjacent TN and GA, Coastal Plain of Panhandle FL, GA, AL, MS, LA, and se. TX, and in sw. AR and se. OK.

The native range of Acer leucoderme (Chalk maple)

Kartesz, J.T., The Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2015. North American Plant Atlas. (http://bonap.net/napa). Chapel Hill, N.C. [maps generated from Kartesz, J.T. 2015. Floristic Synthesis of North America, Version 1.0. Biota of North America Program (BONAP). (in press)].

The Georgia range of Acer leucoderme (Chalk maple)

Zomlefer, W.B., J.R. Carter, & D.E. Giannasi. 2014 (and ongoing). The Atlas of Georgia Plants. University of Georgia Herbarium (Athens, Georgia) and Valdosta State University Herbarium (Valdosta, Georgia). Available at: http://www.georgiaherbaria.org/.