Hi Kyle

I am echoing your enquiry as I am also Enthusiastic about Gathering Japanese Maple Seeds.Like yourself I am very Keen to gather the Seeds at the Optimum time

Miketann ~ Gardengal & Houzi all have great Knowledge and have been very helpful with all aspects of Japanese Maple advice..I am sure they can offer some Excellent advice with this Issue..

Stephen,Cheshire,UK

In general, the optimum time to harvest seeds is in early fall as the leaves begin to change color and the samaras lose color (become brown). When properly ripe, the seeds should easily come off in your hands without serious tugging or pulling. And not all seeds will be viable, so collect plenty and be prepared for only a portion to germinate successfully (however, JM's have less of an issue with this than some other species).

Thanks Gardengal for your advice..

Like Kyle who posted the Original Comment I want to try my best to gather a decent amount of Ripe Seeds to Maximize the Chances of a reasonable Germination Percentage.

Just another few Enquiries.Are Seeds best picked off the Tree rather than picked off the Ground from beneath the Tree?.Will a Japanese Maple shed all its Seeds Naturally?

Stephen,Cheshire,UK

Yes, JM's shed seeds naturally - that's how Mike has gathered that huge assortment of maples he has :-) And no, there's really no difference with picking seeds off the trees or gathering ones already fallen. Just make sure they are this season's and not last's.....