Any day now our maples will start to bud then sprout green flowers before the first leaves appear. Native maples are very common in most areas and the smaller types are popular as a landscape plant. The distinctive leaves are a good way to identify them unless a sweet gum tree is nearby. the sweet gum has similiar looking leaves. The best part of maples is that most of the maple is useful for food, medicine, or tools. The bright green flowers of spring can be eaten raw, stir fried, or steamed with seasoning. The tender young leaves and seeds can be eaten raw or cooked. The inner bark is sweet and can be eater raw, cooked, pounded into flour, or tapped for maple syrup. The bark can be used for rope and the wood is useful for tools, firewood, and to support large forest trees. It is this last use that i find most appealing.
