I can recommend anywhere from five to 10 pages. Corrugated cardboard works equally well. Spread the newspaper or cardboard out so that it is two pages wide, and overlap thoroughly to prevent weeds and grass from growing through. Wet it down immediately so the wind can't pull any nasty tricks on you. Cover right away with a bit of mulch, and when you've weighted the newspaper down, cover it completely with mulch. If you do a good job, you ought to be able to stifle and otherwise kill the vast majority of plants that used to live in that spot.

Fortunately for us, ink in newspapers is now soy-based and is, therefore, nontoxic. By next year, the newspaper or cardboard will have completely disappeared.

Be sure to mulch thoroughly, but be sure you don't get too enthusiastic about the thickness. There are problems associated with overly thick mulch, and in this case, it would be deleterious for your maple were you to use too much. For organic mulches, such as compost or shredded leaves, maintain a 2- to 3-inch layer. For coarse materials, such as wood chips, maintain a 3- to 4-inch layer. Mulches decompose in time; their rate of decomposition depends on particle size and composition. Plan to add more mulch occasionally, but do not exceed the recommended layer depths