Acer platanoides, commonly known as the Norway maple, is a species of maple native to eastern and central Europe and western Asia, from Spain east to Russia, north to southern Scandinavia and southeast to northern Iran. Under ideal conditions in its native range, Norway maple may live up to 250 years, but often has a much shorter life expectancy; in North America, for example, sometimes only 60 years. Especially when used on streets, it can have insufficient space for its root network and is prone to the roots wrapping around themselves, killing the tree. In addition, their roots tend to be quite shallow and thereby they easily out-compete nearby plants for nutrient uptake. Norway maples often cause significant damage and clean-up costs for municipalities and homeowners when branches break off in storms as it does not have strong wood. During the 1950s–60s it became popular as a street tree due to the large-scale loss of American elms from Dutch elm disease.
It is favoured due to its tall trunk and tolerance of poor, compacted soils and urban pollution, conditions in which sugar maple has difficulty. It has become a popular species for bonsai in Europe and is used for medium to large bonsai sizes. Norway maples are not typically cultivated for maple syrup production due to the lower sugar content of the sap compared to sugar maple.
