Field Maple

Field Maple 'Elsrijk' (Acer campestre 'Elsrijk') is a compact conical maple selected for streets and driveways, reaching about 8m tall and 5m wide with clear golden autumn colour. The reason to choose it over other maples is underground: the root system is well behaved, so it can be planted near paving, verges and services without the usual worry.

Why you'll love it

• Roots that stay out of trouble. Non-invasive roots mean it suits a narrow verge or a driveway edge where a liquidambar would lift the concrete.
• A tidy conical shape. It holds a symmetrical form with very little pruning, which is exactly why it is used as a street tree.
• Golden autumn colour. The leaves turn clean yellow before dropping, and the bare winter framework lets low sun back through.
• Genuinely low maintenance. Frost hardy, wind tolerant, drought tolerant once established and content in poor soil.

Where it works best

Driveways and avenues. Plant 4m apart for an avenue. That spacing suits the 5m mature width and gives a continuous canopy line without the trees crowding each other.

Shade tree. A single tree over a seating area or a small lawn, sized for a suburban block rather than acreage.

Screening and privacy. A row along a boundary screens an upper storey through the growing season, though it is deciduous, so winter privacy is limited.

Growing Field Maple in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun for the best shape and colour. Frost hardy and wind tolerant, so cool temperate, warm temperate and Mediterranean gardens all suit, with the strongest colour where nights turn cold.

Soil. Undemanding. It copes with poor and compacted ground better than most maples, another reason it works as a street tree. Improve clay with compost and mulch 75mm deep, clear of the trunk.

Water and feed. Deep soak twice a week through the first two summers, then it becomes drought tolerant and needs water only in extended dry weather. A complete slow release fertiliser in early spring for the first few years.

Pruning. Very little required. Prune in winter while it is bare to take out crossing branches and lift the lower canopy above a driveway. The conical habit looks after itself.

What to expect when it arrives

It comes in 45L and 100L. The 45L is a young tree with a well set leader, and the practical choice when you are planting several down a drive. The 100L is advanced stock carrying real height and trunk thickness, for a frontage that needs to read as finished from the start.

Deciduous trees move most easily in winter when they are bare, and go out in leaf through the warmer months. Delivered Australia wide, delivery from $29.95, advanced and large stock is freighted at cost, and every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Best trees for lining a driveway, with spacing advice.
• Compare other trees with non-invasive roots for tight sites.
• Browse the wider driveway tree range.
• See everything with autumn colour.

Common questions

Can I plant it near paving?

Yes, and that is this selection's main advantage. The roots are non-invasive, so a narrow verge or a driveway edge is a reasonable position rather than a gamble.

How far apart for an avenue?

Plant 4m apart. That matches the 5m mature width and gives a continuous canopy line with a little overlap between trees once they mature.

Will it colour in a warm climate?

It turns golden most reliably in cool temperate gardens. In warm temperate and Mediterranean districts the yellow is softer and arrives later in the season.

How big does it get?

Around 8m tall and 5m wide, which is compact for a shade tree. That restraint is a large part of why it is planted on suburban streets.