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| AUTUMN BLAZE MAPLE, PLANTED AS A SAPLING IN 2001... |
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| ...NOW ABOUT 40' TALL |
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| WITH A LEAF VERY SIMILAR TO THAT OF THE SILER MAPLE |
Acer x 'Autumn Blaze' is one of several maple varieties currently on the market that are hybrids between the silver maple, Acer saccharinum, and the red maple, Acer rubrum. Autumn Blaze is a patented hybrid, as is another hybrid, Freeman's red maple. Since such hybrids occur also in nature, there is a great potential for more of them to be named, and pop up in the nursery trade.
Autumn Blaze has excellent fall color, although whether it can truly be said to be superior in that regard to the native red maple I think is doubtful. It does have other desirable characteristics as a hybrid, being somewhat more adaptable to varying soil and moisture conditions than Acer rubrum, and having stronger branches than Acer saccharinum. It retains the very desirable flowering character of the red maple. It's leaves are quite similar to those of the silver maple, and its lower branches are weeping in nature, as are the silver maple's. Autumn Blaze also has the shape, height and width characteristics of the red maple, and can be grown from zone 3 to zone 7 or 8.
So, Autumm blaze is a very nice, practical tree. But is it over planted? Definitely yes. Popularity always comes with a price, and what was once a hot new item can soon become a has-been when everyone has one (or many). The nursery industry is often caught in such a bind, planting too many of a popular new variety and then, after a big investment, finding that they are no longer so popular and end up with too many for the marketplace and losing money.
Red and silver maples have life spans of up to 150 years, and we do not know at this time how the Autumn Blaze will hold up in its old age. Plant it if you like it, but don't over do it.
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