Fraxinus pennsylvanica - Green Ash

The green ash is one of the most commonly planted trees in the country because they're very fast growing trees and they provide shade in only a few years. We don't see as many here as in colder climates. As I said, they are fast growing, I have seen 3-5' of growth on some trees when planted as a bare root specimen. They will grow at least 2' a year when young and will eventually reach 70' with a broad asymmetrically rounded canopy. They are deciduous and will provide a weak yellow color that will last for a short period of time unless the weather is cold and they will fall overnight, sometimes still green. Most of the plants sold are male cultivars because females produce millions of fruit that will likely germinate.

Leaves are deciduous, opposite, pinnately compound, 6-9" long, with 7 elliptical to broadly lanceolate leaflets. Leaflets are about 1-2" long, having various amounts of serrations on the margins, may or may not have hair on the lower surface, but they usually do in the spring.

Twigs can be stout or thin on weak lower branches. Usually squared at the nodes. Buds are covered with hairs, copper colored, with the terminal being larger than the others. Usually three buds in the terminal location. Leaf scars are one key to correct identification. The bud sits on top of the semicircular scar.

Plants are dioecious, male and female. Developing early spring along with the foliage, usually slightly earlier. Many selections are males.

Females.

 Males.

Fruit is a narrow, straight samara, borne in large clusters, green turning brown and falling   about the same time as the leaves.

Bark is smooth, gray but eventually darker, furrowed, scaly or ridged.

Misidentification:
Ash trees can be tough to sort out. The bud and leaf scar are one important characteristic. Leaflet shapes, margins, bud color are other things to look at.

Location:
Aptos 125 Heather Terrace - Aegis Living

Acer truncatum - Shantung Maple

The Shantung Maple is a beautiful small deciduous tree with a nice tight rounded canopy to 25'. Wonderful fall color and drought tolerance once established, I am surprised its not more common. Also known as the Purpleblow maple. Drought tolerant, smallish, fall color, what's not to like?

The deciduous leaves are opposite, simple, 3-5" long, dark glossy green, with five lobes which are usually entire but can be undulated. The base of the leaf is often truncated, or flat which is were the name comes from. White milky sap can be seen if you remove the leaves in summer. New spring growth with a reddish cast.

Flowers are small, greenish yellow and look like many other maples in this group (A. platanoides, A. campestre).

Fruit is a pair of samaras, usually broadly spreading into a U shape.

Stems are smooth, as is the bark.

Fall color can be yellow, reds, oranges. This is one I planted many years ago in Spokane.

This species is related to A. platanoides and has been hybridized to produce several commercially available trees including  'Pacific Sunset' and 'Norwegian Sunset'. Both hybrids resulting in a smaller size, better fall color and drought tolerance of A. truncatum.


Misidentification:
Most likely looks like a cultivar of A. palmatum around here. But the flowers are a different color.
Other locations where more maples grow you might see A. pictum mono, A. cappadocicum.

Stumbled across this https://www.metromaples.com/shantung-maples. Wow.


Location:
Aptos
114 Seacliff Dr
204 El Camino Del Mar

Edited 5/24

Acer x freemanii 'Armstrong' - Armstrong Maple

The best and worst examples of this tree are in Scotts Valley, where they were planted to create a nice vertical accent to the entrances of the shopping center, then had the tops cut out of them. Anyway, a nice hybrid red/silver maple with a tall narrow habit, 40+ feet tall and 15' wide. Potentially fair fall color.

Leaves are opposite, simple, palmately lobed, 5-6" long and deeply lobed margins much more silver maple like that red. Very long red tinged petioles.

Fruit is a samara, red wings turning brown. Wings are almost parallel.

Considered to have good, but not great fall color. I suspect it has too much of the silver maple fall color gene (to go along with the leaf shape).

Misidentification:
Other A. x Freemanii hybrids, but this one is very narrow. There are other similar columnar hybrid or red maples but they have leaves more like a red maple. 'Bowhall' and 'Columnare'.

Location:
Scotts Valley
Mt Herman Dr at most entrances to the shopping center.

Watsonville
Library at Freedom Blvd and Airport intersection.

Acer ginnala - Amur Maple

I ran into a specimen of the Amur Maple while cutting through the Soquel School. Not at all common in SC. The Amur maple is a nice little tree growing to maybe 20' tall with potentially great fall color. Often grown as a multi-stemmed specimen or can be trained as a single stem. A cultivar called 'Flame' has great fall color.

Sorry, old picture with low resolution, but shows the fall color.

Leaves are deciduous, simple, opposite, ovate shaped, with serrated margins, sometimes considered to be lobed with a prominent central lobe. Leaves are 2-4" long. 

Leaves can be quite variable in size as well as being very lobed or only slightly serrated. Age and rate of growth seem to be the deciding factor, with older slower growing plants showing smaller less deeply serrated margins.

Flowers are produced in spring, light green or yellowish, in chains, slightly fragrant. 

Fruit is typical of maples, paired samaras. The pairs hang almost parallel to each other and one is generally much smaller than the other. In summer they can be bright red. 

Bark is dark gray and usually pretty smooth but as they age they develop some longitudinal furrows. 

Also know as Acer tataricum ginnala.

Misidentification:
Not likely

Location:
Capitola
On Porter St at the Soquel School, near the east end of the campus close to the building. (Gone, removed for remodeling.)

Ulmus pumila - SIberian Elm

The Siberian Elm is a very common elm in many parts of the country, and pretty common here. They are exceptionally hardy, weedy, brittle, usually with some dead wood, but easy to grow. They are medium to large deciduous trees with a fast growth rate to 50-60' forming a broad upright habit with several strong primary lateral branches.

Leaves are deciduous, simple, alternately arranged, 2-3" long (hence the pumila = small) elliptical to oblong or ovate shaped, with singly serrated margins, medium green upper surface, lighter below. Unlike many elms the leaf base is more or less symmetrical. Fall color usually yellow, but may see a little red here and there. Often no fall color at all.

Terminal stems are thin, resulting in a slightly weeping habit of the fine branching.

These are flower buds, rounded, while the vegetative buds are tiny. Small red flowers in the spring.

Fruit is a flatten samara, about the size of a dime, thin papery with the seed more or less in the middle.

Bark is rough, platy, gray and dark gray to black.

An ever so common sight on these elms is the constant leaking for ooze from wounds or natural cracks. Bacterial wetwood.

Fall color up in the PNW.

Misidentification:
Ulmus parvifolia is commonly confused with this, though several distinct difference are quite obvious. The bark for one, flowering season - this one blooms in spring, and the growth habit - this one is larger, and not as layered as U. parvifolia.

Location:
Aptos
309 and 311 Spreckels Dr.

Santa Cruz
Nice one at the Cemetery on Ocean Street Extension is in the first picture.

Acer japonicum - Full Moon Maple

The full moon maple is an awesome small tree with great foliage and fantastic fall color. Trees are usually multi-stemmed with upright spreading lateral branches developing an rounded canopy to about 20' tall. Spectacular red and orange fall color. 

I think most specimens you are likely encounter will be 'Vitifolium' and these pictures are of that cultivar. Another you may see is 'Aconitifolium' which I will highlight in a different post.

Fall color is fantastic, reddish orange and yellows. 

Leaves are opposite, simple, 3-6" long and wide, almost round in outline, palmately lobed with 7-11 shallow finely serrated lobes. The leaves are also described as being palmate with deeply divided margins, about 1/3 of the way in. 

New leaves emerge rolled up and pendulous out of the elongating red buds.

One difference seen between this and the Japanese maple is the presence of hairs on the petioles.

Flowers are small, red and yellow colored, emerging with the new foliage but lasting well into full leaf out.

Fruit is a samara, in pairs, each about 1" long, usually at 180 degrees.

Misidentification:
Acer palmatum can look very similar. The leaves of the full moon maple are rounded (hence the full moon common name) and the petioles are hairy.

Leaves can look very much like the Vine maple, A. circinatum which is native to parts of CA and north. I think the leaves tend to have more coarsely serrated lobes.

Location
Went missing.

Acer buergerianum - Trident Maple

The trident maple is a great little tree and a welcome addition to our evergreen dominated urban forest. It is a small deciduous tree, 10-25' tall, generally rounded outline, often low split trunk forming a multi-stemmed tree. Foliage is dense. Foliage is green during summer and can turn beautiful red in fall, depending on location.

Leaves are opposite, simple, 3-lobed near the apex, rounded base, 2-3" long and wide. Very distinct but can resemble some of the red maples. Lobes are acute pointing forward, entire on the lower half of the leaf, lightly serrated towards the tips. Dark green above, lighter green below with a waxy layer (glaucescent bloom). Petioles are 1.5-2" long.

Variable leaf shape.

Flowers in an erect panicle, light yellow, early spring.

Fruit are paired samaras, typical of the maples. Samaras about 1.5-2" long with more or less parallel wings. Reddish in summer.

Bark

There are several very interesting cultivars but usually not very widely planted except by collectors. They may have smaller foliage, twisted foliage or even variegated. Several are in Santa Cruz. Makes a great Bonsai.

Misidentification: maybe a young red maple but they would be much larger trees.

Location:
Aptos:
228 North Ave (Seacliff) nice specimen.

Capitola:
4675 Capitola Rd. Capitola
Center St and Sunset in Capitola
720 Sunset Capitola, funny how they show up in the same neighborhood.

Santa Cruz:
Nice grove in Harvey West Park