The Best Maple Trees For Your Minnesota Yard

Maple trees are far and away the most popular shade tree in Minnesota and specifically the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. The fall colors on a maple are unrivaled compared to other trees as well as the incredible amount of shade they provide. Getting a maple tree that can grow large and tall, along with your family and home, is a very popular decision for many families. We can empathize with homeowners going to a greenhouse to pick out a baby maple tree but being intimidated by all the choices. That’s why we wrote up the best (and worst) maple trees for your Minnesota yard.

There were a few things we kept in mind when selecting the best varieties. The size of the fully grown tree matters, too small is out of the question. We wanted good fall colors (otherwise why use a maple). Lastly, we wanted trees that would be hardy enough to survive the harsh Minnesota winters.

The Best Varieties of Maple Trees for Your Yard

We will cut right to the chase. We recommend going with a Sugar Maple ‘Acer Saccharum’ or a Red Maple ‘Acer Rubrum’, these two types have the most impressive fall colors and growth form. Our first requirement was looking options that grow at least 30’ wide and 40’ tall to get a nice shade tree form in a maple. All of the options below will be around 40’ wide and 50’ tall which is perfect for shade. Narrower trees will not look as nice as stand-alone trees in the lawn. Narrow trees also will not provide the filtered shade and desirable form of a traditional shaped shade tree.