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MaryAnne at Mama Smiles Welcome to my blog! I'm MaryAnne, and I write about building a rewarding family life through mindful parenting, hands-on learning, and creative family activities. Learn more.

Welcoming Spring: Japanese Maple in Spring Nature Study of New Leaves

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Japanese Maple 01 April 2010

I mentioned back in March that I wanted to chronicle spring leaves emerging on our Japanese Maple tree. I was expecting it to take a couple of weeks, but the entire process lasted over a month. The above pictures was taken April 1st, and the buds had not changed much since my Spring Science post from March 23rd.

Japanese Maple 05 April 2010 This picture is from April 5th. The buds are elongated a bit, and you can tell that they are really leaves curled very tightly.

Japanese Maple 08 April 2010 By April 8th, the leaves didn’t really look like buds at all.

Japanese Maple 13 April 2010

April 13th was the next time I had my act together enough to take a picture. The leaves are already beginning to unfurl. This picture reminds me a bit of a butterfly that has just emerged from its chrysalis.

Japanese Maple 20 April 2010 I was expecting the leaves to unfurl suddenly, but they were still mostly closed April 20th.

Japanese Maple 21 April 2010

Things started to happen quickly April 21st, when the leaves opened suddenly to reveal these little seeds. At least I think they are seeds – anybody know for sure?

Japanese Maple 22 April 2010 The seeds (?) were gone by the afternoon of April 22nd!

Japanese Maple 25 April 2010 And the leaves were fully emerged by April 25th.

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  1. How fun! I saw something on another blog (perhaps playful learning?) awhile ago where they took photos like this and then put them together into a little video/slideshow thing. It was pretty cool.

    I love Japanese maples. Happy Spring!
    .-= Jaimie´s last blog ..DIY: Changing Table Pad to Doll Bunk Beds =-.

  2. How exciting! We used to have a Japanese maple tree at our old house, and I miss it. I looked forward to the leaves budding every year.
    .-= Valerie @ Frugal Family Fun Blog´s last blog ..Easy City Scape Mural =-.

  8. Awesome!!! I loved getting to see the little slideshow of progression! I want to do a project like this–it would make a great writing prompt for my students, especially as we’re working on comparative and descriptive words.

  9. Our maple like this is doing the same thing. Love these pictures and the way you’ve documented the changing of this tree!
    .-= susana´s last blog ..The Best Days =-.

  10. I’ve been looking forward to this series of photos, and it’s just as fantastic as I had hoped! Any news on whether those really are seeds? Gorgeous tree!!
    .-= Elisa | blissfulE´s last blog ..afternoon rest time =-.

  11. We planted a Japanese Maple last year so this spring will be the first time to watch it bud. I love your pictures. I didn’t know it went through such a process. It should be fun to watch!

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