Botanical Name: Acer carpinifolium
Family: Sapindaceae
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Sapindales
Genus: Acer
Section:Acer sect. indivisa
Species:A. carpinifolium
Common Names: Hornbeam Maple, Japanese: Chidorinoki “zigzag tree”
Habitat:
Acer carpinifolium is native to Japan on the islands of Honshu, Kyushu, and Shikoku, where it grows in woodlands and alongside streams in mountainous areas. It grows on valleys and ravines in mountains all over Japan. Common in temperate deciduous forests, usually in moist sites along streams at elevations of 200 – 1300 metres.
Description:
Acer carpinifolium is a small deciduous tree growing to 10–15 m tall, with smooth, dark greenish-grey to grey-brown bark. The leaves are 7–15 cm long and 3–6 cm broad, simple, unlobed, and pinnately veined with 18–24 pairs of veins and a serrated margin. They resemble leaves of hornbeams more than they do other maples, except for being arranged in opposite pairs, and in the very small basal pair of veins being palmately arranged as in other maples. The flowers are 1 cm diameter, greenish yellow, produced in pendulous racemes 5–12 cm long in spring as the new leaves open; they are dioecious, with male and female flowers on separate trees. The fruit is a samara of two seeds each with a 2–3 cm long wing.
Cultivation:
Of easy cultivation, it prefers a good moist well-drained soil, preferring a sunny position but tolerating some shade. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Chlorosis can sometimes develop as a result of iron deficiency when the plants are grown in alkaline soils, but in general maples are not fussy as to soil pH. Most maples are bad companion plants, inhibiting the growth of nearby plants. This species is dioecious, at least one male plant needs to be grown with up to 5 females if seed is required. Special Features:Not North American native, Inconspicuous flowers or blooms.
Edible Uses:
The sap contains a certain amount of sugar and can either be used as a drink, or can be concentrated into a syrup by boiling off the water The syrup is used as a sweetener on many foods. The concentration of sugar is considerably lower than in the sugar maples (A. saccharum). The tree trunk is tapped in the early spring, the sap flowing better on warm sunny days following a frost. The best sap production comes from cold-winter areas with continental climates.
Medicinal Uses: Not known to us.
Other Uses:
The leaves are packed around apples, rootcrops etc to help preserve them.
Disclaimer : The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplement, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provid
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acer_carpinifolium
https://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Acer+carpinifolium
