![]() Trees tend to release seeds when they’re already partially dried out, and while these are edible, those samara plucked right from the tree are generally tastier. The distance and speed of travel depends partly on the surrounding cover samaras dropped by trees in open fields or yards are likely to spin farther than those dropped by maples in dense woods. Falling samaras may reach a terminal velocity of three meters per second (about three miles per hour). Dispersed by the wind, maple samaras take advantage of their helicopter attributes by spinning distances as far as 330 feet. Silver maple samaras are considerably larger – about two inches long – and connected at a 90-degree angle. Striped (moose) maples have wider wings, joined at a 140-degree angle. Sugar maples attach at a similar angle, but the wings are slightly larger (about 1 ¼ inch) and greener. Red maple samaras have reddish wings about one inch long and linked at a 60-degree angle. The size and color of the wings and the angle at which they connect will vary among individual samaras but are helpful indications of tree species. Maple samaras come in twos, with their seed pods fused together and the wings spreading from either side – a bit like a handlebar mustache. All maple species native to the Northeast have edible seeds. A second crop of samaras, from species including sugar maples, striped maples and boxelders, will ripen and fall in early autumn. Before the tended garden plot has yielded even one peapod or lettuce leaf, red and silver maple samaras offer a spring delicacy for opportunistic backyard foragers. ![]() Turns out those seeds are edible, packed with protein and carbohydrates, and quite tasty. ![]() Maybe I should tell them to stop playing with their food. They gather fistfuls of maple samaras, toss them over the railing of the upstairs porch, and watch them flutter earthward. Like many New Englanders, I have fond childhood memories of dropping maple “helicopters” from a height and watching them twist and twirl down to the ground. Whatever you call the winged seeds released by maple trees, here’s one more word for them: delicious. ![]()
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