Keele University Arboretum
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Grey-budded Snake-bark Maple Acer rufinerve
Origin: introduced from Japan in 1879, it a member of the Snake-bark group of maples, so-called for the coloured striations on the bark. It is frequently planted in large gardens.
The bark is greenish with pale grey or sometimes pink stripes. With age it also aquires diamond-shaped markings, as shown in the picture.
The leaf is three-lobed, often broader than long. It is variable in size and degree of lobing. The petiole (stalk) is green which distinguishes it from the similar Red Snake-bark Maple Acer capillipes in which they are red.
The fruits are small, 1-2cm across and joined at an obtuse angle.
At Keele : one tree by the path on the field side of Barnes Dell; square P14; compartment 12a.
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