Your tree is not a maple, but Liriodendron tulipifera or commonly called by many as Tulip poplar.

Marshall

THAT is one of my favorite BIG trees. Leave some of the lower branches on to get the most out of the flower show.

Seriously of all the flowers trees produce that is one of the most singularly impressive. Thank goodness my neighbor has one.

RobertsonPhotos, what kind of fall color do you get out of yours? Some are a pretty darned decent yellow as well.

Oh my. Too funny. I was walking under my VERY tall 'Maples' the other day and was hit in the head with that exact flower. I was STUNNED to find my trees full of them. After googling the web, I realized that my Maples are actually Tulip trees (as is yours). Funny to see this thread today bc I just figured this out myself. This tree gets BIG by the way and for some reason none of mine have any branches for the 1st 100ft or so. It's so high up I almost can't see the leaf shape and certainly can't see the flowers. My back yard is covered in petals though!

All maples flower. That is how they reproduce.

Thank you for this information. I just saw this tree while I was out walking and just fell in love with the flowers. Had to return to take a photo to try to identify this tree.

Unfortunately I think it would grow too huge for my yard...So beautiful.

Pretty much the largest growing Eastern North American native deciduous tree.

I have a huge Tulip poplar on my lot at campground. it didn’t flower last year but has gone crazy this year and i can’t help wondering if it is the cause of my ant problem this year. Do ants help to open the flowers?