There are way too many variables here (direction windows faces, distance of tree from building, height of tree, height of windows, which apartment she will be in, percentage of window blocked by tree, type of maple, foliage density, amount of light desired, etc., etc., etc.), and there is no way anyone is going to be able to give you this type of information without going there and looking at the situation. Generally, maples do cast quite a bit of shade. If the sun is going to be blocked by the maple's foliage, then there's going to be shade.

Brandon, you're so right. Lots of variables. And even being there, all the answers aren't available. that's why its such a tough decision.

My sister was there today at noon-ish and said the bedroom was sunny and the living room was not. Looks like the porch roof is the bigger light-stealer.

I hope to get there soon and take a good picture. I also want to get a twig or two to see if I can ID if it is A. platanoides which might be Crimson King. blech....

Really what you are asking is if she will be bothered. If it's true that having a dense tree out there in summer will get her down, then...

Otherwise, you have the perfect situation that a deciduous tree provides: light coming through a winter silhouette that can be looked at and enjoyed, summer glare blocked out. It being a Norway maple specifically the main bothers are heavy shade and dense roots - primarily a problem for those attempting to garden beneath them and in my climate anyway amazing heavy drip and sooty mold from aphids in summer, many specimens looking as though oiled.

Wendy,
I think the second floor will likely be as others have mentioned shady in the summer but again that could be a good thing. For me however looking at your photo and having myself experienced the demands of measuring "level of care" for aging parents, there were a few flags that were raised for me in regards to this senior apartment. I am of course unaware of your moms specific needs but I do know that any move for a senior is highly stressful so of course the hope is this senior apartment will meet your moms needs for many years. I understand that these decisions can be highly stressful and fraught with inter-family strife it is not my intent to add to that so if you have already made a decision donÂt read any further.
1. Street level living is in fact the most ideal, your mom will not be able to live in her apartment if she can not navigate the stairwell by herself (in case of fire).
2. I donÂt like what appears to be a non-handicap door way, I know most folks donÂt want to think about it but it is not unlikely that your Mom wonÂt experience some type of re-hab care and she will be able to return home much faster if for example she can navigate through a doorway with a walker by herself.
3. Try knocking on a few doors and talk to your Moms future neighbors they will likely offer you a wealth of information.
4. Most folks donÂt suffer from SAD during the non-winter months so if that is your only concern I wouldnÂt give it a second thought.
5. This one I know will sound insane but I wish someone had shared it with me when I was moving my Mom into senior housing. At the time we were all a little anxious about the move and wanted Mom to be as happy and comfortable as possible so of course we wanted her to bring with her all of her "things" that were important to her, the reality however has the senior apartment was so small that many things and particularly furniture just wouldnÂt physically fit. We then went out and bought her all new furniture that would fit the space, in retrospect I wish we had spoken to the facility about our needs as often many pieces can be recycled or purchased from previous tenants in new to like new condition.
Best of luck to you and your Mom during what I imagine is a stressful time. kt

kt, how thoughtful of you to share your experiences from going through the same process.

Actually the worst stress is behind us. She has been at the complex in another unit for 2 months. When she signed up initially, they offered a particular style/size unit. But then they messed up and it wasn't available so they put her in a temporary more expensive unit and put her on wait list for the next one like the first one. Talk about stressful... that was extremely disappointing. Moving from a house of 46 years and then just having to be on-hold for an unkown period of time! She really wants to settle in. I would hate for her to have to move yet again if this next apartment doesn't work out for any reason. She says the tree won't bother her, but I know she has no idea of the impact. When she is at my house in the backyard, she thinks the birds are too noisy. Yes, she is not a nature person!!! She just wants to be done with this process no matter what.

I'm surprised about the door access thing because half of the residents there have walkers. I'm going to assume thats ok.

Yes, the SAD or SAD-like symptoms are my major concern. She is a different person on a sunny day and cloudy day. In my mind, I thought it was a year-round thing, but maybe not. I will pay more attention. Maybe the sun in the bedroom will be enough to get the job done.

I also will talk to the mgmt about fire exiting and the stairs/elevator. I know my Mom said something about instructions to stay inside the unit in case of fire (wet towel at door). At least having the balcony might be helpful in case of fire. I know they do have emergency generator for common areas and the elevator. They also have speaker system.

The mgmt also has said they will promise to keep the tree pruned. That won't help ME when I am there and see an assymetrical butcher job that will bug me!!! But it will help make my case later when I tell them that it was a bad site to put a maple in the first place. Maybe I would offer to pay half to take it down and put up a nice flowering crabapple or such.

Thanks

Wendy

Well its almost a done deal. Here's a couple of views (from the living room and standing on the balcony), then some twigs. And its trunk is about 15' from the building's edge. The building is 12 years old.

I was there at 10am and the sun was still just to the left of the tree and barely higher than it. The room was nice and bright so that is promising. With the sun even higher in the sky during the season, maybe it will clear it if they can keep it pruned to that height.

Can you tell what kind of maple? If Norway, green or purple?

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Looking here to be red maple (Acer rubrum). Much more of a see-through tree than a Norway maple, although still a large-growing maple.

Oh that's good. Maybe its October GLory. they're very common around here. Who knows... maybe she will get in touch with nature and come to appreciate the beauty!

Next step is the red flowers.

I thought I would post an update. She moved in to that apartment. It's a little dark at times but she doesn't seem to notice it or care. I always put the lights on when I go over. She rarely goes out on the balcony, but the tree does provide great privacy and a nice ambience IMO. Over the years, pruning will have to come into play, but we'll worry about that later.

Here's the tree today in its glory. It absolutely glows -- more than the picture shows. She actually said it was beautiful!! The 2nd shot is bad (cell phone camera), but it shows the relationship of the tree to the windows.

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Thanks for the pictures and updates! Glad your mother is enjoying her new home.

To me it looks like the tree "makes" that location. What would be there to look at instead if it wasn't there? More rectilinear architecture? It's lack of trees and greenery in high-density development that's a bummer, not having a tree out the window.

It is true that having coniferous evergreens blocking windows is unpleasant - especially in a dull climate like mine.

If she does start to feel "down" from the lack of light in summer, there are light boxes that can be used (sat in front of while eating or reading the paper) for half an hour or so per morning/day, that will help with the syndrome. I don't know any sources off hand, but have seen several types in various catalogues, so I know they are out there. They don't seem to be too expensive, certainly under $200.

So if she isn't getting outside much in the sun, it may be related to Vitamin D deficiency. The only way to find out is by taking blood test to find out the amount of Vitamin D in the blood. It's called 25(OH)D, also called 25-hydroxyvitamin D test. It's also linked to flu and respiratory infection cases that seem to be at its highest level in February when Vitamin D level is at the lowest.

Cod Liver with natural Vitamin A and D like Garden of Life brand will do wonders. 400 IU of vitamin D is "recommended" by Gov't but it may be 800-1000 IU a day to be effective. Human body can produce as much as 10,000-20,000 IU a day just by standing outside for 30 minutes during the summer at noon.