Tree Highlight: Boxelder
Boxelder
Acer negundo (Family Sapindaceae)
Boxelder leaves look very similar to poison ivy leaves
The basics
In North America, boxelder (Acer negundo) has an expansive range that extends from the east coast to California and from Canada to Southern Mexico. Boxelders are known for their hardiness and ability to grow in most soils. They can reach 70 feet tall and can live up to 60 years. Different from other maple species, boxelder has a compound leaf, consisting usually of 3 leaflets. Just like other maples, boxelders produce “winged samaras” or “helicopters” that twirl to the ground.
Did you know?
- Boxelder is a species of maple.
- Boxelders are dioecious, meaning that they have separate male and female trees.
- If they have enough room, boxelders will grow multiple trunks.
Boxelder samaras, the fruit of Acer (maple) trees
Boxelder bugs can be spotted on the tree’s foliage and fruits
Wildlife
- Boxelder wood is soft so when it dies, it quickly decays leaving cavities that can be inhabited by owls, other birds, and small mammals.
- The black and red-bodied “boxelder bugs” are named for the tree and feed on the leaves, fruits, and soft seeds. They often congregate in homes but are essentially harmless.
Uses
- Boxelder is a “grow anywhere” tree and can provide a canopy where no other tree could grow.
- The sap is high in sugar content and can be used to produce “mountain molasses.”
- Native Americans used the inner bark for food and boiled the sap for syrup and candy.
Bark of the boxelder tree
Benefits
- Over a 20-year period, a healthy boxelder with a diameter of 15 inches will offset 7,868 car miles worth of CO2, absorb enough stormwater to fill 1,538 bathtubs, and remove an amount of pollution from the air – in gaseous and particulate form – equivalent in weight to 79 smartphones! Learn more at: https://mytree.itreetools.org/
Boxelder Tree of the Week video
By University of Kentucky Forestry and Natural Resources Extension.
Click to watchContact us: ufi@uky.edu
Images sourced from forestyimages.org
