Acer circinatum
Published by Daniel Mosquin on October 8, 2005
Family / Families: Sapindaceae
Scientific Name(s): Acer circinatum Pursh
Location(s): E.C. Manning Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada
Entry Author(s): Daniel Mosquin
Copyright Holder(s): Daniel Mosquin
Image License: Creative Commons License
Tags: British Columbia, Canada, Photo by Daniel, Sapindaceae, Sapindales

Acer circinatum in E.C. Manning Provincial Park
Acer circinatum, second of a three-part series on this plant. The first can be seen here. The last of the series will include a written piece about the whys and hows of autumn leaf colours.
Botany / conservation resource link: H. Bruce Rinker’s article entitled, “The Weight of a Petal: The Value of Botanical Gardens“. An excellent (but brief) article summarizing the benefits of research and conservation gardens, such as UBC.
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Acer circinatum is native to N America, B.C. to California. Z5. Source – RHS Dictionary Index of Garden Plants – Griffiths
just wondering…is that moss in the branches?
or halloween ghost?
phillip
Hello, Phillip. It’s neither a moss nor a Halloween ghost – it’s a lichen, probably something from the genus Usnea.
Daniel, what an absolutely glorious photo! Thanks for linking to the two-years-prior BPoD pictures. I look at the one- and two-year photos each day, as well as enjoying the current day’s treat.
Like other species, autumn dress can vary wildly between individuals. Some are amazing, others are terrible. Several I once had planted out front were always lousy, as are others planted in Camano Island garden – although now fairly large I thinking of suggesting we remove them, as they have been a source of annoyance for some years.
Buying in fall color would be a good plan with this one, something that is true generally with deciduous trees and shrubs raised from seeds and planted for fall color.