It can thrive in rocky or desert areas and is drought tolerant. It has yellow-orange to dark-red leaves in the autumn, while in spring, it blooms with small greenish-yellow buds. It is indigenous to Texas but is also quite rare. The bark becomes chalky and light-gray as it matures. The Chalk Maple reaches up to 25 feet and is the most colorful maple in Texas.

Chalk Maple (acer leucoderme) Fall color.

Chalk Maple acer leucoderme summer color.

In acidic soils, they yield the best growth and color, but in Texas, they thrive in wet soils. The blossoms and leaves of the female trees may be a richer crimson color. On trees up to 50 to 70 feet in height, the Red Maple bears spectacular crimson to orange flowers in the spring and winters and orange to red foliage. It flowers in spring with yellow-green clusters. In autumn, the slightly thick, three- to five-lobed evergreen leaves turn a brilliant red and gold color. Its limbs are robust and straight, and its scaly bark is dark brown. Native to Texas, the Bigtooth Maple is a shrubby or tree-like plant that matures to a height of 10-15 feet but can grow to be much taller.

Bigtooth Maple (Acer Grandidentatum) Leaves.

Let’s talk about each of these in detail.

Some of these trees are the Bigtooth Maple, Red Maple, Chalk Maple, Box Elder Maple, and Silver Maple. The Lost Maples are some of Texas’ most coveted native trees due to their amazing beauty and hardiness. While maple trees grown in Texas do not often yield sap for maple syrup or sugar manufacturing, they can bring beauty and uniqueness to the state’s landscape and can be used in small and large gardening projects.

Maple type trees