Shantung maple Aceraceae Acer truncatum

Leaf:Opposite, simple, overall shape a half circle, 3 to 6 inches wide, usually 5 v-shaped lobes (may resemble a sweetgum leaf) with entire margins, usually with a truncate leaf base, exudes milky white sap from the petiole when detached, green above and below. Subspecies mono has shallower sinuses, giving it a boxey look.
Flower:Yellow to green, each flower to 1/2 inch wide (large for a maple), clustered in 3 inch flower heads, appearing in spring.
Fruit:Two-winged pair of samaras about 1 inch long, forming a broad U shape or tight V shape, oval seed cavity, matures in early fall.
Twig:Reddish brown to grayish brown (some with a purple tint), buds plump and green to purplish brown, somewhat elongated.
Bark:Variable, but generally grayish brown or with a purple tint, young bark warty; older trees may be somewhat furrowed, with short, thick, irregular curling-outward ridges.
Form:A small tree with a round crown, commonly to 25 feet (subsp. mono to 40 feet and more, spreading).

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