The young Norway maple has a smooth, light brown bark, which gets its characteristic furrows only in old age. The bark of the maple is traversed by small, elongated grooves and has the property not to peel off. The bark of the maple tree is characterized by prominent furrows, the bark can show a light gray to greenish-gray color. At the end bud, the incompletely formed uppermost lateral bud pair is visible. The lateral buds remain smaller and are close to the shoot. The full-grown, egg-shaped buds are up to nine inches long and five to seven inches wide. The budding buds are bare and shimmer reddish-brown. During autumn, the leaves of the maple turn golden-yellow to an intense red.

The leaf margins are pointed, as the name suggests. It is divided into five to seven different sized lobes. A maple leaf is recognizable by its shape reminiscent of a hand. The leaf top has a dark green, glossy color, the interior of the petiole contains a milky liquid. It stalk can grow up to 20 centimeters long (8 inch). The leaves of the maple are arranged opposite, as in the sycamore maple. The stem thickness of a maple tree ranges from 60 to 100 centimeters (23 to 40 inch). In old age, the maple has formed a nearly round crown, its branches do not grow overhanging and do not become excessively long.

As a young tree, the maple is fast-growing. Its branches grow diagonally upwards, sometimes horizontally. On the slender trunk sits a pronounced, dense treetop. Norway maple can grow up to 30 meters (99 ft) tall.

Acer platanoides norway maple