Native Talk Tuesday #4

The plant featured in today's Native Talk Tuesday is Acer circinatum, commonly known as the Vine Maple. The photo below was taken in Silver Falls State Park and is found at low to middle elevations throughout both the Coast Range and the Cascade Range. It is generally found under trees, near streams and usually any place that is moist to wet with some sunlight.

You can call it a shrub or scraggly tree, it grows up to a  height of 25 feet. The leaves are often distinguished from any other maple due to having 7-9 lobes instead of 3-5. In Autumn, the small leaves of the Vine Maple turn a bright red that is sometimes fringed with yellow. As with most maples, the fruits of the Vine Maple are the typical "wings" that spiral downward as they fall. The wood of the Vine Maple was used for snowshoe frames, drum hoops, and dining utensils. It still is used by some people today for making bows and arrows as the wood is dense and flexible when fresh. On one episode of Grant's Getaways, one local does just that; check it out at Grants Getaways: Taking Aim at Archery.