Where Maple Leaves Come From

When I started to chose the small branch to watch and record, it seemed modest enough. A few buds on spare twigs. By the time the leaves had opened the visual density and shear number of leaves made for a less satisfying composition. Each bud seems to yield two leaves. In this hybrid Japanese maple specimen the flowers emerge and drop just as the pairs of leave emerge and unfold. Zooming in on the development of the samaras (‘helicopter’ seed/fruits) might make another nice animation, with showing them spiraling down …