There are few sights as glorious as a stand of red maples on a bright, early winter's evening in South Florida. Mix in some rusty looking cypress and you'll think you're spending a fall day in Vermont. Well, almost.

But this tree, known as Acer rubrum to scientists, has much more than good looks going for it. Native Americans depended on red maple for everything from food to medicine to building materials. It was so important medicinally, that one tribe considered red maple sacred. In the second decade of the 21st century, we still find it useful in many ways.

Red maple is a Florida native, found throughout the state as far south as Broward and mainland Monroe counties, the extreme southern limits of its range. It is the only maple tree native to South Florida and it's one of the few trees in the region to put on a spectacular fall display before dropping its leaves.

Red maple is the most widespread of any tree in eastern North America. It's range covers the eastern United States. and Canada as far north as New Brunswick and Nova Scotia and west to Minnesota, Oklahoma and Kansas. The feds also include Oregon as part of red maple's native range.

First thing to know about red maple is that it has an affinity for water, usually found along the banks of streams and rivers and in and along marshes and swamps. Second thing is that red maple can vary widely in its looks, not surprising considering its wide range. Officially three different varieties are recognized these days, but many more have been proposed over the years. Under optimal conditions, it can be a huge tree, reaching as high as 120 feet, with a diameter of four feet. Generally, though, it will top out at half that at most. The red maple's height down here is somewhat limited unless its very near water. The leaves have the classic maple leaf shape, deep, pointed lobes, with serrated edges, but the number of lobes can vary from three to five depending on variety.