Little maple trees
By Pamholman
United States 
I have thousands of little maple trees growing in my landscape. How can I kill them without harming my ornamental plants and trees.
The little maple trees are only about 1/2 to 3/4 inch tall. They are just sprouting from the maple seeds that have fallen into the landscape. The seedlings are spread over the entire landscape, in and around my plants & trees and in the open area also. When I say thousands, I mean thousands. The mulch nearly looks green from all the little maple trees coming up.
21 May, 2008
Answers
Perhaps a local tree wholesaler would be interested, would remove some of them at no cost to you in exchange for the stock, or pay you for the marketable sizes
22 May, 2008
The little maple trees are only about 1/2 to 3/4 inch tall. They are just sprouting from the maple seeds that have fallen into the landscape. The seedlings are spread over the entire landscape, in and around my plants & trees and in the open area also. When I say thousands, I mean thousands. The mulch nearly looks green from all the little maple trees coming up.
22 May, 2008
I have had similar experiences with ash and sycamore seedlings. I pull them up as soon as I see them, they can be easily removed before they produce recognisable leaves. However they quickly produce proper leaves, their stems take on a brownish hue and their root systems spread thus anchoring them firmly, you will probably have to dig them out if they reach this stage.
22 May, 2008
I think we need more information, Pam. How near are they to your precious plants? How many is 'thousands' and how big are they, for starters. Do they grow in clusters near the parent tree/s or are they spread around? Could you post a photo?
22 May, 2008