Sugar Maple (hard maple, rock maple) Sugar maple (Acer saccharum) is the most abundant of the seven maple species found in New York State, and is common throughout New England, the Lake States, Mid-Atlantic states, and several Canadian provinces.he leaves of sugar maple are simple (single) and like the buds are in an opposite arrangement on the twigs (Figure 1). They are usually five-lobed although certain trees may possess leaves with three, four, or five lobes. Leaves are dark green on the top surface and paler underneath.