An Autumnretum at the Arboretum, Part One: The Colorful Foliage
The arboretum becomes it's own mystical Autumn Wonderland in the fall....not just an arboretum but an autumnretum. My friend and I decided to take advantage of colors of fall foliage by doing a meeting of The Sharp Shooters (our photo club) in the arboretum. We were not disappointed by the abundance of autumnal glory.
It was a blue-skied, sunny but crisp day on the day we took photos. The blue sky contrasted especially nice with the array of colorful leaves.
Leaf shadow!
This little blue lady is like a fairy tale character, emerged from a beautiful wood. She the magical pixie with all the spells. Or, she is not emerging from the woods, but rather going into the woods. She is the ordinary character about to meet the extraordinary.
I've read in a couple of different places that in America, we use the word 'Fall' more and that in England they use the word 'Autumn.' I feel like Americans that I know including myself use the word Autumn way more than Fall, but we also use Fall. But maybe it is a regional thing and in the regions I've lived in Autumn is more common but in most American regions Fall is.
Someone obviously threw down their bike, struck by the wonder of the autumn wonderland ahead of them. They could no longer ride....they could only stare in awestruck wonder at the beauty of nature.
It was a blue-skied, sunny but crisp day on the day we took photos. The blue sky contrasted especially nice with the array of colorful leaves.
The yellow tree is reaching for the green tree trying to grasp at the green that once belonged to it.
Little leafed maples always have the most beautiful leaf colors in the Fall. Such fiery red!
Leaf shadow!
Scientists think that global warming will have an impact on the glorious fall colors we currently enjoy. The constant warm temperatures are going to mess with the the trees normal rhythm, thus messing with the beauty of Fall.
It isn't just the flora that changes in the Winter time, it is also the fauna. For instance, the black capped chickadees hippopocampus (part of the brain) enlarges by 30 percent in the fall so it is able to remember where to collect drop seeds.
I've read in a couple of different places that in America, we use the word 'Fall' more and that in England they use the word 'Autumn.' I feel like Americans that I know including myself use the word Autumn way more than Fall, but we also use Fall. But maybe it is a regional thing and in the regions I've lived in Autumn is more common but in most American regions Fall is.
This yellow tree looks like it is striking a pose in between doing interpretive dance moves. I bet this tree is especially beautiful on a super windy day!
Animals in fall have much responsibility. Squirrels gather their winter nuts, bears nestle in for hibernation, and birds prepare for winter migration. The birds that have one of the longest migrations is the Winter tern. They 11,000 miles! They are admirable little birds to take on such a journey.
I like that Autumn gives us a burst of color before the long and dreary extended gray of Winter. It's like our brain gets pumped with color just before all we have to look at his murky rain puddles, bare branches, slate skies and sometimes the white snow. Winter is full of it's own beauty too, but I think it would be harder to appreciate it if not juxtaposed so closely with the beauty of Autumn.
The arboretum in autumn is a good place to to experience and enjoy the beauty and calmness of one of the best times of the year!