breaking free

It seems odd to be noticing maple samaras now, but I just looked it up and these Amur Maple samaras do indeed mature in late summer. Amur maple is not not native to North America, so maybe that explains the discordancy of maple seeds ripening in August. I love the pink and lime green color combination in these half-mature seeds. They will continue to ripen to a very dark pinky red in the next few weeks. I find myself wondering why all the non-native imports are so much more colorful than our native plants, and then I remind myself that these plants were exported around the globe precisely because they are colorful. It’s not that ALL plants from Eurasia are more color than ours, it’s simply that the ones that have been brought here were specifically chosen for that very reason. Is this what they call a tautological question?

amur maple samaras (Acer tataricum subsp. ginnala)