I have shown you this Bradford Pear Tree more than once.  It is our favorite.  It is the end of November and it is showing us green and purple.  In years past it has been red and yellow and purple.  I wonder why it happens this way.

 

I don't know.  I have read about fall color in great detail, and every year it seems to be different.  I am just thankful.

 

 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

 

This is the Shagbark Hickory on the corner.  I put the Seek app on it, and this is what I got.  ;)

 

You really need to add Seek to your App library.  It is free, and it is fabulous.  It identifies plants, mammals, insects, amphibians, fungi, and it is usually correct.  Sometimes it is a bit indecisive, but most of the time it's right on.  I don't depend on it for plant edibility, but I think it's a great resource for further investigation.  

 

At least it gets us in the ballpark.

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

It's looking a lot like winter here, just not as cold, yet.  Although, on Thanksgiving we are expecting a cold front to come through.  After that, we will be looking at lows in the twenties, and a couple nights in the teens.  EEK!!!

 

Can't complain, though, our fall was quite warm.  I guess winter has to present itself eventually.  And it is almost December.

 

 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING WEEK!!!

 

I thought you'd like to see the last of the tulip poplar leaves.  A few are still hanging on at the tops of the trees.  We are looking at the end of fall.  Just a few leaves are still hanging on.  The oak trees still have their leaves, and a few others, but it is winding down, and we are almost done with fall color.  

 

It is still beautiful though, in its own way.  

 

HAPPY FALL!!!!

 

My red maple tree is still sparkling, even though the day was quite foggy.

 

HAPPY FALL!!!

 

This hickory tree has dropped all its gold and brown leaves into the garden;  it is beautiful.  

 

All those dots you see on the tree are the hickory nuts!!!  I bet there are a thousand up there.  And there are a few more trees in this area doing the same thing.  

 

The squirrels are very busy going up and down and across the limbs of these trees.  By the time winter arrives all these hickory nuts will be stored and/or planted, and the critters will be well-fed into the spring.

 

There are a number of species of hickory in our area;  some are sweet and edible, others are bitter and inedible.  Three species are listed in my Peterson Field Guides Edible Wild Plants:  Shagbark Hickory, Pecan, and Mockernut Hickory, all in the genus Carya.  I think most of the hickories in our yard are Mockernut, Carya tomentosa.  I have seen some Shagbark Hickory in the neighborhood too, Carya ovata.  That one is easily identifiable by its bark.  Pecan trees, Carya illinoensis are the ones with the sweet edible nuts.  I think the mockernuts are edible too, but I'd rather leave them for the squirrels and the deer.  

 

HAPPY FALL!!!

 

This is an American Beech showing its fall color.  It is green and yellow and brown all over, and it sparkles in the sun.

 

American Beech in our area holds onto its dead brown leaves through the winter, until the new leaves push the old ones off.  This one hasn't gotten to that stage yet, but it is on its way.  I love watching as it goes through its changes.

 

 

HAPPY FALL!!!

 

 

 

Here is our road as we started out for our walk yesterday.  Most of those beautiful maple and hickory leaves are on the road.  And that's where they are going to stay until the wind blows them off.  

 

We do have to be careful when we walk down the hill, though.  There are tons of hickory nuts on the road too.  They crunch when we drive over them, but get really slippery when we walk on them.  So we just take baby steps and go slow.  We love seeing the leaves on the ground.  

 

 

HAPPY FALL!!!

 

Here is our neighbors' holly tree with red berries.  It is about 12 feet tall and covered with berries.  

 

It makes me happy every time we walk by it.

 

 

HAPPY FALL!!!

 

Here is another interesting vine growing in our woods.  It is wild grape.  

 

You can see how different it looks than poison ivy or bittersweet.  It acts differently too.  

 

It doesn't have hairy roots like poison ivy to hold it to the tree.  It climbs high into the trees by riding up the branches as the tree grows.  The vines also get very woody, making them almost look like tree trunks themselves.  And unlike bittersweet it doesn't twine itself around tree trunks for support.  It just seems to float.

 

And best of all:  in spring it blooms, and in summer it gets beautiful purple-blue grapes that we can eat.  The grapes that grow here are a little sour, but still a tasty snack on a long hike.

 

So now when you see these vines growing in the woods, you can identify them at a glance.  

 

 

HAPPY FALL!!!