Ignoring hints
from tulip tree and maple,
elm stays green, for now.
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
Stubborn?
Category: seasons
Maples — Where and When
Two kinds of maple are common where I live. Sometimes called “swamp maple” because it can thrive in swampy areas, red maple can also thrive atop rocky hills and in the intermediate conditions of landscaped yards. Sugar maples are the other (and more finicky) kind.
The wide range of suitable habitats may partly explain the wide range of turning times for red maples. While they turn early in swampy areas, some of them in other areas turn as late as oaks. Those that turn at a middling time don’t seem to mind being upstaged by the best of the sugar maples:
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
Black Hole in Galaxy of Leaves
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
Ferns & Fall Foliage
Autumn is a season when images accumulate faster than I can write appropriate poetry, so I will sometimes post an unsung image.
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
Goldenrod
Ah, such a cheery yellow graces the month of September. Alas, ragweed flowers out of sight at the same time, giving goldenrod a bad rep among some people with hay fever. While ragweed sheds pollen to the whims of the wind, goldenrod holds pollen that will be picked up and transported by insect pollinators. You’re not likely to inhale any goldenrod pollen unless a bee crawls up your nose.
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
Rhododendron Rescue in 2023
Where I live, it’s normal to get a big snowstorm around the middle of March. It’s not normal to have so much heavy wet snow on a lopsided rhododendron rooted in such soft thawed soil that the whole bush topples over. Could it saved?
Riff on a Quote from a Song
From a cloudless far horizon …
to a gap in dense fall foliage …
to an old window covering …
« There is a crack in everything. »
« That’s how the light gets in. »
~ Anthem by Leonard Cohen ~
I quoted from the song the way I and some others remember it. The phrase “a crack” is repeated in some transcriptions of the first quoted line, but the line scans better w/o the repetition.
Cracks ~ Pic and a Word Challenge #341
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
Deciduous Trees
Lifeless? No, leafless.
They hold their breath all winter,
exhale leaves in spring.
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
Dusted for Fingerprints
Snow on lawn.
Tracks from last mowing,
seen again.
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
Last Few Nights of Old Year
Seen thru bare branches
that thrash in an angry wind,
Xmas lights shimmer.
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
What’s This?
Many things make more sense when seen from a distance in their context, rather than up close and isolated. Here’s one for the current season.
Lingering Leaves
Cherry hibernates,
safe under pine’s watchful eye.
A few leaves linger.
11-07 |
|
 |
|
 |
 |
11-24 |
|
 |
|
11-26 |
|
 |
The cherry had one last leaf on 11-26.
Did it sing Nunc dimittis before it fell on 11-30?
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
“Fall, shmall. Gonna set seed.”
Yes, I know that garden gurus recommend doing many things in fall. I also know that some plants routinely set seed then. But most of my lawn only kicks grass into flower beds in spring and summer. Intrigued by a patch that seemed to be proclaiming this post’s title, I took a break from raking fall leaves to photograph the nonconforming grass from angles that yielded contrasting backgrounds. Growing more vigorously than most of my lawn, this little patch may be onto something.
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
Last Song of the Leaves
The sound of dry rain
fills the air above my yard.
“Keep the rake handy.”
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
Glory in Gold and Silver
October
Bright sun and cool air;
azure skies and pumpkin pies.
Leaves fall in glory.
Silver Savior
The crowning glory
of our civilization
is, of course, duct tape.
Glory ~ Pic and a Word Challenge #334
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
Turning Sequence
Still-green oak
will follow maple
in due time.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
– Gray button (upper left corner) reveals widgets, –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
– above post (on phone) or beside it (on desktop). –
