Autumn Blaze Maple

Scientific Name: Acer x freemanii ‘Jeffersred’

Family: Aceraceae

Origin: Eastern US

What does the scientific name Acer x freemanii ‘Jeffersred’ mean? This tree is a cross, or hybrid, between Acer rubrum (red maple) and Acer saccharinum (silver maple). It is called freemanii or Freeman’s maple because Oliver Freeman was the first to grow this hybrid in 1933 at the U.S. National Arboretum ‘Jeffersred’ is a cultivar, or cultivated species, discovered by Glenn Jeffers in the 1960s.

Other Names: Freeman maple, Freeman’s Maple.

Why is it called Autumn Blaze Maple ? The foliage of this tree turns orange-red in autumn.  Autumn Blaze is the trade name of the ‘Jeffersred’ cultivar of Acer x freemanii. A cultivar is a plant variety that has been produced in cultivation by selective breeding.

Mature Height: 40-60 feet

Mature Width/Spread: 40-50 feet

Leaves: The leaves have five-pointed lobes with toothed margins. The leaves are green in the summer, and the veins of the leaves are often red in color.

In the fall, the leaves become: orange-red

 Did you know …

• In 1933, Oliver Freeman of the US National Arboretum hybridized Acer rubrum (red maple) and Acer saccharinum (silver maple).  This is why the tree is also called a Freeman Maple.

• This tree grows four times faster than a traditional red maple, and it can grow up to 3 feet or more each year.

Sources

https://wimastergardener.org/article/autumn-blaze-maple/

https://www.arborday.org/trees/treeguide/TreeDetail.cfm?ItemID=2572

https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=c789

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acer_%C3%97_freemanii

Photo Credit

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