Quick Facts
Exposure: Full Sun to Part Shade
Height at Maturity: 60-75 Feet
Usage: Vibrant Foliage
Shipped As: Bare-root
Planting Zones:
Product Details
Buying sugar maple seedlings by the bundle is the most economical way to establish Acer saccharum, the hard maple behind maple syrup, premium hardwood lumber and the orange-gold fall color of northern and Appalachian forests. Tennessee Wholesale Nursery ships bare root sugar maple seedlings in packs of 100, 500 and 1,000 for sugarbush developers, timber and reforestation planters, municipal forestry programs and nurseries lining out shade trees.
Quick Facts: Sugar Maple
| Botanical name | Acer saccharum (sugar maple, hard maple, rock maple) |
|---|---|
| Family | Sapindaceae (soapberry family, maple group) |
| USDA zones | 3 to 8 |
| Mature height | 60 to 75 feet, with a dense, rounded crown 40 to 50 feet wide |
| Light | Full sun to part shade; seedlings thrive under a forest canopy |
| Soil | Deep, moist, well-drained loam; slightly acidic to neutral |
| Fall color | Brilliant orange, gold and scarlet |
| Grades sold | 6-12 inch, 12-18 inch, plus 6-24 inch row run |
| Bundles | 100, 500, 1,000 (bare root, dormant) |
What Sets Sugar Maple Apart
Sugar maple is a long-lived upland hardwood with a different job than the faster lowland maples. Its sap carries the highest sugar content of any maple, which is why it anchors commercial and hobby sugarbushes. Its dense, fine-grained wood is sold as hard maple for flooring, furniture, cabinets and bowling alleys, making it a long-term timber investment. And its five-lobed leaves with smooth, rounded sinuses produce some of the most dependable orange and gold foliage of any shade tree.
Sugar maple is also one of the most shade-adapted hardwoods in eastern forests. Young trees develop steadily beneath an existing canopy, so it excels in underplanting and forest enrichment projects where sun-loving species would wait for a gap.
Who Plants Sugar Maple Seedlings
- Maple syrup producers establishing or expanding a sugarbush for future tapping.
- Timber growers and landowners adding a high-value hardwood to upland stands alongside oaks and tulip poplar.
- Reforestation and conservation crews restoring northern hardwood and cove forest on well-drained slopes.
- Cities and parks departments planting long-lived shade trees for boulevards, campuses and parks.
- Nurseries lining out uniform liners to grow on into caliper shade trees.
Choosing a Seedling Grade
The 6-12 inch grade suits high-count reforestation and nursery beds. The 12-18 inch grade gives landscape and municipal crews a larger stem that is easier to find and maintain after planting. Row run 6-24 inch is the natural mix of sizes straight from the bed, a strong value for large-acreage plantings.
Spacing and Trees Per Acre
Hardwood reforestation commonly uses 10 by 10 foot spacing, about 435 sugar maple seedlings per acre, or 8 by 8 foot spacing, about 680 per acre, for tighter crown closure and straighter timber stems. A new sugarbush is often planted at similar density and thinned over time to the strongest tappable trees. For streets and parks, allow 35 to 50 feet between trees. Our planting instructions cover handling and planting depth for bare root stock.
Wildlife and Ecosystem Value
Sugar maple seeds ripen in fall and feed squirrels, chipmunks and songbirds, while white-tailed deer and moose browse the twigs. Early spring flowers supply pollen for native bees, and the deep shade and rich leaf litter build the moist, fertile forest floor that supports spring wildflowers. It pairs naturally with American beech, white oak and tulip poplar in mixed hardwood plantings.
Sugar Maple vs Red and Silver Maple
All three are native maples, but they fill different roles. Sugar maple is the upland, syrup-and-timber species with orange-gold fall color. Red maple spans wet and dry sites and colors scarlet. Silver maple is the fastest grower of the three and is built for floodplains and streambanks. Many projects use all three across different parts of the same site.
Sugar Maple Seedling Questions
How fast do sugar maple seedlings grow?
Sugar maple grows at a slow to moderate, steady rate, often about 1 foot per year on good sites, building the dense wood that makes it valuable as timber.
How long before a sugar maple can be tapped for syrup?
Trees are generally tapped once the trunk reaches about 10 to 12 inches in diameter at chest height, which typically takes several decades from seedling.
What zones are sugar maple seedlings suited for?
Sugar maple is hardy in USDA zones 3 through 8. Our USDA zone finder will confirm your location.
What soil do sugar maples prefer?
They thrive in deep, moist, well-drained loam on slopes, coves and uplands, in slightly acidic to neutral soil.
When do sugar maple seedlings ship?
They ship dormant and bare root in November, the ideal window for fall and winter planting.
Do you quote orders of several thousand sugar maples?
Yes. Submit a wholesale pricing request with your species and counts, and we will quote the full order.
Grown in Altamont, Tennessee
Roscoe Tate started our nursery in 1959, and his family still runs it today on 170 acres in Altamont, Tennessee, with Tennessee Wholesale Nursery serving as the wholesale division of TN Nursery. The USAF and the Discovery Channel used our maple trees for a time-lapse of a tree breaking dormancy into full leaf. Each sugar maple bundle is lifted dormant, root-dipped in Terra-Sorb hydrogel and sealed to stay moist for up to 12 days in transit, and every order is covered by our Arrive Alive guarantee.