The largest maple in Canada, the bigleaf maple, grows only in the southwest corner of British Columbia (B.C.). It yields attractive wood that can be used for higher-value, appearance-grade products. Bigleaf maple is the largest maple tree in Canada and can reach 36 metres in height.
Where it grows
Bigleaf maple is a deciduous broadleaf tree that grows exclusively at low and mid elevations in the southwest corner of B.C. It is frequently found in clumps of three to five, all originating from a single stump. The species is moderately shade tolerant and commonly occurs in mixed groups of softwood and hardwood species such as red alder, black cottonwood, Douglas-fir, western red cedar and western hemlock. Bigleaf maple produces abundant seeds so its regeneration capacity is excellent even though the seeds are an important source of food for small mammals.
Identifiable characteristics
Bigleaf maple, also known as Pacific Coast maple or western maple, is the largest maple tree in Canada, reaching 36 metres in height on good sites. In the forest, it develops a narrow crown that is supported by a stem free of branches for half its length. In the open, it has a broad crown supported by a few large spreading limbs. The bark is greyish-brown and shallowly grooved when the tree is older. The species lives an average of 200 years, with some up to 300 years.
The leaves are the largest of any maple in Canada, measuring 15 to 30 centimetres across. They are deeply five-lobed and have a few blunt, wavy teeth. They are shiny dark green on top and paler underneath and turn yellow in the fall. Small greenish-yellow flowers, about three millimetres across, appear in clusters at the ends of twigs in the spring. The fruit consists of two winged seeds joined at the base, which are three to six centimetres long.
Did you know?
Grain patterns are unsurpassed in some bigleaf maple trees. Occasionally, pieces have highly figured, wavy grain—these include bird’s eye, fiddle-back, blister and curly maple.
