Old Norway maple in the playground of St. George's public school provided shade and fun for about 70 years but a branch broke on Thursday, forcing the tree to be chopped down.

She looks so fragile standing under the massive Norway maple, as if the wind gusting through its branches will carry her away. But that’s a misconception because Rita-Anne Piquet is not fragile.

In Canada, Norway maple was planted widely in cities and towns after World War II as a reliable and rapidly growing replacement for white elms when they were largely eliminated as an urban street tree ...

Canada Post has featured Norway maple leaves on its stamps. Moosehead, a lager brewed in Saint John, trumpets on its beer cases: “Founded in 1867, we were born with Canada,” below a drawing of ...

Andy Beaton, London’s manager of forestry, said all of the city’s 28,500 Norway maple trees could be affected in some way, adding the issue this year is “absolutely” worse than in the past.

According to tree expert David Tracey, the stylized maple leaf on Canada's five dollar bill is a replica of the Norway maple, which is not from Canada. (Peter Scobie/CBC) ...

Wall said in the 17 years he’s lived in the neighbourhood, three branches have fallen to the ground that he had observed. “The manager’s reason for removing the trees is safety,” he said.

But that resemblance is just one of the Norway maple’s cunning tricks. For all the European tree’s outward charm, foresters damn its name.