Sugar Maple is famous for it’s sweet sap that we turn into a delicious syrup, but it’s also a tree that can provide a critical food supply to bees early in the season, when there aren’t many pollen and nectar sources around.

Bumble Bee queens that have overwintered and are the lone winter survivors of their species, seeking to feed their first young with what ever food they can gather, will make good of the chartreuse blooms of the Sugar Maple. Overwintering honeybees also emerge from their colonies to harvest from the Sugar Maple’s male flowers.

Interestingly, with Sugar Maples we see a rare one-way street between Bees and the plant providing them food, as they do not visit the female flowers and aid pollination, due to the fact that they contain no nectar nor pollen. The wind takes care of this, though, as is often the case with trees.

As a deciduous tree, Sugar Maple is invaluable to bees for another reason, as well. The gorgeous, orange falling autumn leaves will come to provide a cover that is valuable protection for many overwintering bees, many of which burrow slightly into the ground or cocoon into rotting logs.

Aside from the rewards that the Sugar Maple provides to many of our world’s pollinators, which in return rewards us, this species of Acer provides us not just with stunning autumn displays but also with the resource to make the famously sweet syrup.

Keep in mind that this is a patient endeavor if you want to get max production out of your tree(s), generally 3 decades of growth required before tapping. You can begin tapping after 15-20 years, but your tree(s) will peak at a smaller size (if you desire a smaller tree, this may be a good option).

Acer saccharum does well in sites that are well-drained, and slightly acidic in pH. Fertile soil is also best, and if you’re planning to tap the trees someday, this is especially true for flavor. Avoid areas where there is a risk of salt from the road getting into the soil, as that has a negative impact on the trees growth and production of both flowers for the bees and sap for you.

Protecting your young maple from getting chewed on, especially by hungry winter herbivores is a good plant. You can do so by circling metal ¼ to ½ inch wire fencing around it. This will help keep rabbits and cheer from chewing down the young branches or stripping it of bark, which can be fatal to a small tree.