# what are those small yellow "seeds" covering my yard **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 2, 2017, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-small-yellow-seeds-covering-my-yard/785705 "2017-05-02T10:50:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Honey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honey/32/5074_2.png) [@Honey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Honey)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2017, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-small-yellow-seeds-covering-my-yard/785705/1 "2017-05-02T10:50:07Z")
I don’t know what they are, but they cover my yard and my car. They come from the same trees that also cover my yard in those damn “helicopters”, or samaras. I think they’re maples. I’m not talking about a dust of yellow, these are tiny yellow balls connected to a small stem and my whole yard is covered by them. I’ve been Googling it for an hour, and I can’t find anything. If these things are going to annoy me so much, I should at least know what they’re called. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2017, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-small-yellow-seeds-covering-my-yard/785705/2 "2017-05-02T11:13:12Z")
We get stuff like that from our pin oaks. [Looks](https://www.google.com/search?q=pin+oak+pollen&client=safari&hl=en-us&prmd=ismvn&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiuroLZidHTAhVM9YMKHadvD0QQ_AUICSgB&biw=1024&bih=671) like this. ---
**Author:** ![Isilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2017, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-small-yellow-seeds-covering-my-yard/785705/3 "2017-05-02T12:25:43Z")
The male version of a seed pod (stamen) of the maple tree. You will remember that roses and similar flowers have the stamen AND ovary… The stamen produces pollen which carries DNA to the ovaries to make seeds… Well in maples, and various other trees, they have flowers which only stamen OR ovaries. So the flower is either male or female. Well, even in the same species of maple , the trees may have a mixture of male and female flowers, OR be purely male, or be purely female ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2017, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-small-yellow-seeds-covering-my-yard/785705/4 "2017-05-02T12:59:19Z")
> [@Isilder](#): > > The male version of a seed pod (stamen) of the maple tree. > > You will remember that roses and similar flowers have the stamen AND ovary… The stamen produces pollen which carries DNA to the ovaries to make seeds… > > Well in maples, and various other trees, they have flowers which only stamen OR ovaries. So the flower is either male or female. > > Well, even in the same species of maple , the trees may have a mixture of male and female flowers, > OR be purely male, or be purely female Basically they are maple cocks, and you should call them that. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2017, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-small-yellow-seeds-covering-my-yard/785705/5 "2017-05-02T16:45:13Z")
> [@naita](#): > > Basically they are maple cocks, and you should call them that. No, that’s a breakfast cereal. ---
**Author:** ![Caffeine.addict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f475e1/32.png) [@Caffeine.addict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caffeine.addict)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2017, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-small-yellow-seeds-covering-my-yard/785705/6 "2017-05-02T17:08:33Z")
> [@naita](#): > > Basically they are maple cocks, and you should call them that. So does that mean that when my car is covered in pollen, it has been bukkaked on? ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2017, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-small-yellow-seeds-covering-my-yard/785705/7 "2017-05-02T17:24:49Z")
> [@Caffeine.addict](#): > > So does that mean that when my car is covered in pollen, it has been bukkaked on? Our cars are garaged, but my gf’s “farm truck” is parked outside. It is currently _covered_ in tree-cum and robin shit. Nasty. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2017, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-small-yellow-seeds-covering-my-yard/785705/8 "2017-05-02T18:08:50Z")
> [@Isilder](#): > > The male version of a seed pod (stamen) of the maple tree. > > You will remember that roses and similar flowers have the stamen AND ovary… The stamen produces pollen which carries DNA to the ovaries to make seeds… > > Well in maples, and various other trees, they have flowers which only stamen OR ovaries. So the flower is either male or female. > > Well, even in the same species of maple , the trees may have a mixture of male and female flowers, > OR be purely male, or be purely female We have a HUGE maple tree in front of our house that produces lots of little helicopters this time of year. These are ovaries, right? And every year we have to pull out hundreds of little maple trees from the yard. So how are the ovaries reproducing by themselves, without stamens? What is pollinating the helicopters? Or does pollen blow over from other trees? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2017, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-small-yellow-seeds-covering-my-yard/785705/9 "2017-05-02T18:52:25Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > We have a HUGE maple tree in front of our house that produces lots of little helicopters this time of year. These are ovaries, right? And every year we have to pull out hundreds of little maple trees from the yard. So how are the ovaries reproducing by themselves, without stamens? What is pollinating the helicopters? Or does pollen blow over from other trees? Maple flowers are just flowers - typically pollinated by insects (the flowers bear nectar) [Images of Maple flowers](https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=maple+flowers&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjVqrq38NHTAhWIKcAKHRTVClsQ_AUICigB&biw=1366&bih=700) ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2017, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-small-yellow-seeds-covering-my-yard/785705/10 "2017-05-03T08:15:00Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > We have a HUGE maple tree in front of our house that produces lots of little helicopters this time of year. These are ovaries, right? And every year we have to pull out hundreds of little maple trees from the yard. So how are the ovaries reproducing by themselves, without stamens? What is pollinating the helicopters? Or does pollen blow over from other trees? The little helicopters are seeds.