The sun shining through the leaves of this Japanese maple give a red that almost looks as if the tree were on fire. This is in a Japanese stroll garden at the Hammond Museum in North Salem, New York.

We have a Japanese maple in front of our house in Virginia. Not that tall, but it's very wide. At first, we didn't think that it was a Japanese maple because the leaves were green instead of the brown or reddish color more common to this variety of tree. Then, when autumn came, the leaves turned a bright red, giving it the appearance one would expect. Last autumn, however, the leaves stayed brown instead of turning. Must be global warning.

The Hobbitt loves maple syrup, so we got the idea that one winter we might tap our maple tree. True, it's a Japanese maple, but that would probably give you Japanese maple syrup. Perhaps it would taste a little like wasabi, or maybe soy sauce. Might be interesting.