--- title: Silver Maple in Reno and Carson City | Tree Guide url: https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/silver-maple/ business: Battle Born Tree Service address: 6301 US Highway 50 East, Carson City, NV 89701 phone: 775.232.8243 hours: Office Monday-Friday 8:30 am-5:00 pm; phones answered seven days a week; 24-hour emergency service credentials: ISA Certified Arborist WE-11728A on staff; Nevada Business License # 20131580674; fully insured type: Tree service (removal, crane work, pruning, stump grinding, defensible space, snow removal, firewood) --- - [Home](https://battleborntreeservice.com/) - [Tree guide](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/) - Silver maple # Silver maple Silver maple is a fast-growing shade tree with deeply cut leaves that are silver underneath, and in Northern Nevada the big old ones are known for breaking limbs and for shallow, wide roots that lift sidewalks and driveways. A mature silver maple near a house deserves regular checks by an arborist. - **Botanical name:** Acer saccharinum - **Type:** Deciduous shade tree, fast growing - **Size when old:** Tall with a wide, spreading crown on a short trunk - **Wood:** Brittle, with long limbs that split at unions - **Roots:** Shallow, wide and aggressive near paving - **Hardiness:** Zones 6b to 7b across the service area Planted for fast shade in the older neighborhoods of Reno, Sparks and Carson City, silver maples are now some of the largest trees on their lots. Their size is the issue. ## How do you identify a silver maple? The leaf is the clue. It has five deep lobes with a sharp notch between each, light green on top and silver-white underneath, so the whole tree flashes pale when the wind turns the leaves. Bark is gray and smooth on young trees and breaks into long, loose, shaggy strips on old ones. Seeds are paired winged keys that ripen in spring. The twigs droop at the ends and turn up at the tips. - Deeply cut five-lobed leaves, silver underneath - Shaggy, peeling gray bark on old trees - Paired winged seeds in late spring - Short trunk that divides low into several big limbs ## Where does it grow in the service area? It is a planted valley tree, on irrigated lots in Reno (4,500 feet), Sparks (4,400 feet), Carson City (4,700 feet) and the Carson Valley (4,700 to 4,900 feet), in zones 6b to 7b. It needs more water than the climate supplies: the nearest NOAA stations record about 7 inches (Reno-Tahoe International Airport) to about 9 inches (Carson City) of precipitation a year. University of Nevada Extension notes that high-desert urban landscapes between 4,000 and 6,000 feet have poor, gravelly soil, little organic matter and persistent drying winds, and it recommends deep, infrequent watering that reaches 18 to 24 inches for tree roots. Silver maple rarely fits the high Tahoe lots. ## What goes wrong with it here? The wood is soft and the limbs are long. A silver maple that has grown quickly carries large limbs attached at narrow angles, and snow or wind splits them. See [storm and snow-load breakage](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/storm-and-snow-load-breakage/). Wounds and old pruning cuts let decay in, and hollow trunks are common on old trees, see [root and trunk decay](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/root-and-trunk-decay/). Roots run close to the surface and wide. Near a sidewalk, curb, driveway or sewer, they lift, crack and invade. A [root barrier](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/root-barriers/) can help in some situations, and the [roots guide](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/tree-roots-sidewalks-sewer-lines/) explains when. Cutting large roots can destabilise the tree, so ask first. ## Pruning, cabling or removal: which one? Dead wood and hanging limbs can come off at any time. Other pruning is usually done in late winter, while the tree is dormant. Useful cuts reduce the weight at the ends of long limbs and clear dead and crossing branches. Heavy topping creates weak sprouts; see [why topping is not pruning](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/why-tree-topping-is-not-pruning/). If the trunk is sound but two main stems form a tight V, [cabling and bracing](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/cabling-bracing/) may hold it. Removal is the usual answer when there is decay in the trunk or roots, large dead sections, a crack at a union over a house, or roots that are damaging a foundation or pipes. Big silver maples in tight yards are often [crane-assisted removals](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/crane-assisted-tree-removal/). A certified arborist assesses the tree first, the estimate is free, and we can grind the stump. The wood and chips can be hauled or ask the office about firewood availability. ### Sources - [University of Nevada Cooperative Extension: Gardening Guide for High-Desert Urban Landscapes of Great Basin Regions in Nevada and Utah (SP-13-09)](https://naes.agnt.unr.edu/PMS/Pubs/2013-3170.pdf) (read October 17, 2026) - [USDA Agricultural Research Service: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023 (PRISM, Oregon State University)](https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/) (read October 17, 2026) - [NOAA NCEI: U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020](https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/products/land-based-station/us-climate-normals) (read October 17, 2026) ### Talk to the office [775.232.8243](tel:775.232.8243) | Monday to Friday | 8:30 am - 5:00 pm | |---|---| | Saturday and Sunday | Office closed, phones answered | Phones answered seven days a week. 24-hour emergency service. [Free estimate](#quote) ### Keep reading - [Siberian elm](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/siberian-elm/) - [Fremont cottonwood](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/fremont-cottonwood/) - [Tree roots, sidewalks and sewer lines](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/tree-roots-sidewalks-sewer-lines/) - [Root barriers](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/root-barriers/) - [Large tree removal](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/large-tree-removal/) ## Questions people ask Still have a question? Call [775.232.8243](tel:775.232.8243). Phones are answered seven days a week. ### Why does my silver maple keep dropping branches? The wood is soft and the limbs long, so wind and wet snow break them. Big, thick limbs or limbs with rotted centers need an arborist's attention. ### Will silver maple roots damage my sewer line? Roots can enter cracked or loose joints. If you have slow drains with a large maple nearby, tell us on the estimate. ### Can you cable a silver maple? Sometimes. Cabling helps a sound tree with a weak union, and an arborist decides after inspecting the trunk and the union. ### What do I do if a limb lands on my house? Call 911 if anyone is hurt. If a power line is involved, stay away and call NV Energy. Then call [775.232.8243](tel:775.232.8243), which is also our 24-hour emergency line.