There are many types of maple trees and they all share the same type of leaf. The difference is the leaf can be three, five, seven, or nine-lobed. Maple trees are all deciduous in winter and almost all varieties are characterized by beautiful autumn colors. There are also plenty of differences in the types of maple trees and varieties. The size, for example, or the shape of the crown.

Types of Maple trees

As previously written in the article Everything you Ever wanted to know about the Maple Tree, there are many different types of maple trees. Types of Maple trees are subdivided into numerous varieties. In this article, I will take you through the most beautiful, most famous, and most special maple tree varieties per species. With the exception of the Japanese maple, Acer Palmatum. You can read about this beautiful tree in a separate article: Japanese maple, the 10 most beautiful varieties.

Field maple tree

Field Maple tree, Acer Campestre

The field maple tree is a medium-sized tree with an irregularly rounded crown. Field maple has bright green leaves, which emerge reddish and often have a yellow autumn color. The tree is suitable for landscaping, but can also be pruned as a hedge.

Acer Campestre “Elsrijk”

The ‘Elsrijk’ has a beautifully closed crown in a wide egg shape. The height of the tree is between 8 and 12 meters as an adult tree. The leaf is dark green with a yellow autumn coloring.

Acer Campestre “Nanum”

A somewhat smaller variety is the Campestre Nanum. The Nanum has a maximum height of two to three meters with a spherical crown. The crown can reach a considerable width of up to three meters. The crown is dense with dark green foliage. In autumn the leaves turn dark yellow.

Acer Campestre “Green Collumn”

A field maple tree with green leaves in the shape of a column. The leaves turn a bright yellow in autumn. You can help the young tree to reach its beautiful column shape by pruning it slightly. The height of the adult tree is six to eight meters.

Snakebark maple tree, Acer Capillipes

This beautiful tree has a striking gray and white striped bark. I have not been able to find any varieties of this species and they are not known to me either. But snakebark maple is special enough by itself, especially at a young age the bark is very decorative. The young twigs are shiny red and the autumn color is orange-red to deep red.

Chinese maple tree, Acer Davidii

Native maple in China as the name suggests. This is a small tree or a large shrub about five to six meters high. The bark is white-green with a stripe pattern, which is striking when the tree is a bit older. Young twigs are purple-red and in autumn the leaves turn a beautiful yellow, orange and red.

Acer Davidii “Rosalie”

The “Rosalie” maple has a somewhat smaller leaf and a slightly faster growth compared to the Acer Davidii. Eventually, the tree reaches a mature height of six to eight meters. The stripes on the bark are green in summer and turn pink-red in winter.

Acer Davidii “Serpentine”

This maple tree is suitable as a roof-tree. The trunk is striking in the winter the bark gets a purple-red stripe. The twigs are purple/red in winter. The tree grows slowly and can reach a height of six to eight meters.

​Veldesdoorn

The box elder or boxelder maple, Acer Negundo

The boxelder maple is also known as Manitoba maple or ash-leaved maple and is native to North America. It is a fast-growing maple that reaches a height of 15 to 20 meters when mature. The striking pinnate leaf hangs from red twigs. The tree is also often for sale as a multi-stemmed tree.

Acer Negundo “Aureomarginatum”

This boxelder maple specie is a smaller tree than the original Acer Negundo. The leaves are very beautiful with a yellow-white edge. The height is between six and ten meters.

Acer Negundo “Variegatum”

Also a lower lasting Acer Negundo. The foliage is silver variegated with a creamy white edge and creamy white spots. When the leaves emerge, the white has a pink tint.

Japanese Maple, Acer Palmatum

The Acer Palmatum is a slow-growing, solitary maple. The Japanese maple can reach a height of up to eight meters. Furthermore, the Japanese maple is a maple tree with many types and varieties. So much so that I wrote a separate article about it. You can read the varieties in this article Japanese Maple, the 10 most beautiful varieties.

​Norway Maple, Acer Platanoides

This large tree is native to Europe. The height varies from 20 to 25 meters. The Acer Platanoides has a sycamore-like light green leaves and very beautiful bloom with striking yellow-green flowers. In addition, It is a good breeding tree for bees. The Acer Platanoides is very similar to pseudoplatanus. However, the difference is in the buds, those of the platanoides are red-violet and those of the pseudoplatanus are green.

Acer Platanoides “Columnare”

An older French variety, which grows in a columnar shape. Blooms with yellow cork-shaped flowers and has a yellow autumn coloring.

Platanoides “Crimson Sentry”

A species with red leaves. Strong upright species that reaches a mature height of 10 meters with the right conditions.

Platanoides “Emerald Queen”

This Norway Maple can grow to 12 to 15 meters high and 8 to 10 meters wide. The leaves emerge with a light pink hue and pink-red top shoots that later turn glossy green.

Acer Platanoides “Royal Red”

A cone-shaped strong variety that is widely used. The foliage is reddish-brown. It is an American species with a slightly brighter red leaf than the Dutch varieties. Suitable for planting in parks.

Acer Platanoides “Globosum”

A spherical maple with a very compact dense crown. The height is approximately 3.5 to 4 meters. The leaf is slightly smaller than the leaf of the Norway maple. Suitable to use as a solitary tree.

norway maple tree

Sycamore maple (Acer Pseudoplatanus)

A large tree that can reach a height of 25 meters with a deep root system. The tree has a wide, regular crown, making the tree very suitable as a landscape tree.

Acer Pseudoplatanus “Atropurpureum”

A strong tree that can reach up to 20 meters high. The leaf is dark green on top and dark wine red on the underside. In autumn the underside discolors to dark purple. It is best to place this tree in a light spot, because of the dark leaves.

Acer Pseudoplatanus “Brilliantissimum”

A fairly small tree that is often grown as a half or standard tree with a spherical crown. The leaves emerge pink, in the summer the leaves turn yellowish with fine white tips. After it turns to a fresh green leaf which turns yellow in the autumn.

Canadian Maple or Red Maple, Acer Rubrum

Native to northeastern North America, Canada. This tree has a dense red crown with brown-red twigs. It blooms in March with striking red flowers. The leaf is green-gray, with a blue complexion on the underside. In autumn you have spectacular autumn colors, yellow, orange, bright red.

Acer Rubrum “Red Sunset”

This red maple is considered one of the most beautiful type of maple tree. The sturdy tree has a broad, ovoid crown and flowers abundantly in spring with red flower umbels. The leaf is glossy dark green and changes spectacularly early in the autumn to orange-red and bright red autumn colors.

Acer Rubrum Scanlon

Acer Rubrum “Scanlon”

The Scanlon is the cone-shaped version of the red maple and grows about 8 to 10 meters high and 3 to 4 meters wide. Shiny green leaves turn orange-red to purple-red in autumn.

Acer Rubrum “Brandywine”

Good tree for public spaces, with a decorative autumn coloring. The tree changes color from red to purplish-red for a relatively long period of time. The tree grows to about 7 to 9 meters high and 4 to 5 meters wide.

Creek Maple or Silver Maple, Acer Saccharinum

This fast-growing maple originated in the middle and north of North America. The bald is attached to a red petiole and has a light green color at the top. The underside is silvery blue. The tree can reach a height of 20 to 25 meters.

Sugar Maple, Acer Saccharum

A columnar upright sapling that acquires a pyramidal shape at a later age. In the Netherlands, this tree is rarely cultivated, due to climatic conditions. It is a tall tree, about 25 meters with a round crown.

Paperbark Maple, Acer Griseum

Small recognizable tree due to its peeling bark. The branches and bark are cinnamon-colored, the tree is also grown as a large multi-stemmed shrub. The leaves are dull green but spectacularly orange to scarlet in autumn.