On 26 May 2006 19:43:13 -0700
"Myrl Jeffcoat" wrote:

Oh boy!. . .I was seriously thinking of planting a Silver Maple, to
replace a mistletoe infested Modesto Ash. I want something disease
resistant, and not bothered too much by mistletoe or other pests.

I hadn't considered a problem with seed pod helicoptors. Let me ask a
stupid "blonde" question. . .Do trees come in male and female, and if
so, does one of them NOT have the seed pods??? And also, if they do
come in male and female, how do you tell the difference;-)

I know it sounds crazy, but I'm serious, and just had to ask!


Myrl, not a dumb question at all. Maples can be either monoecious,
meaning having both male and female flowers on the same individual,
or dioecious, meaning individuals are either male or female, depending
on the species.

A. saccharinum (silver maple) usually but not always has both sexes
present, but isolated individuals often produce parthenocarpic samaras
(samaras are the helicopter like fruits). This means they contain no
seed.

There is no way to know whether you would get a rare dioecious example
of this tree. Fertile seed of the species germinates freely, so unless
you have it in a place where you can mow seedlings that could be a
problem.

None the less it is a very lovely tree, and well worth growing, and
I'd recommend it in the right situation.

-E

--
Emery Davis
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