Contrast

  It is funny how here on the Bayou, a few of the trees have decided that it is now fall.  Our weather is not like December weather in the rest of the country.  Here it is the very last of November and it is hot!  The tree in question is a Popcorn Tree or Chinese Tallow Tree.  It is one of those non-native, invasive species of trees that pop up everywhere once one is brought into the area. One seed is all it takes to flood the whole community with unwanted trees.  The Bayou is no exception.  If I stand far out on the end of the pier, I am awarded a nice view of the meandering waterway and marshes that make up our small Bayou.  What used to be lined with Black Gum, Tulip Poplar, Cyprus, Sycamore and Pine Trees is now mostly filled with the Tallow Trees.  The hurricanes have taken their toll on our poor woods and left behind mostly undesirable trees.  Still, the Tallow trees do have one nice asset.  The leaves do give us a bit of fall color even if it is well into November and December.

  While I stood admiring the bit of beauty made available to us by invasive trees, an added bit of interest caught my eye.  An egret had come to rest on the tip of a dead tree.  The white bird was beautiful enough on its own but against the background of reds and oranges, it was purely breathtaking.  The bit of contrast of white on red was gorgeous!  The whole thing was "picture-perfect".  I have a new found respect for the Chinese Tallow Trees merely because of the bit of flair that they added to the view.  

  I am sure that eventually the larger trees will overtake the small Tallow Trees and swamp them out once again.  In the meantime, I pondered the contrast of not only the white bird against a backdrop of red leaves but the contrast of a native Bayou bird against the invasive trees and the dead Tulip Poplar Tree against the healthy Chinese Tallow Trees.  It seems as if life, itself, is contrast...

Just a Hint of Autumn!

  I am so ready for it to be autumn!  I hauled a good many of the fall/Halloween decorations down from the closet upstairs and made a vow to have the house decorated to its fullest before the end of August. I know this is early by most standards but since I have the Clue Hunt on the Bayou starting the first week of October, decorating needs to commence.  It does not help matters that for the past few days we have been enjoying a break in the weather.  Our mornings have been a bit cooler with a hint of a north wind coming through the kitchen window. My brain tells me fall is in the air and I should be doing fall-related things not summertime things.  Forget summer...it was/is too hot!

  Then today comes along and presents me with evidence of an early fall!  Yep, a single red and yellow leaf fell at my feet while I was out with the old Bayou Dog.  Ms. Ez sniffed at the leaf with good intentions of eating it but I grabbed it before it was devoured.  This is my leaf! This is my beginning of fall!  The old dog was a bit confused at my glee but I know she will be just as happy with the changing of the seasons. 

  Question.  Does one brightly colored leaf make autumn?  Nope.  But it sure makes me feel that it cannot be far in the future. 

Our claim to fame!

  It is a tad late for folks to fully enjoy the colors of fall.  Most other states had their peak of leaf color at least a month ago.  However!  Here on the Bayou, one tree is a showstopper! It is sort of our claim to fame when it comes to fall colors...at least for a couple of days. Until the next rain (which is predicted either tomorrow or Saturday), the hickory tree in the front yard is in its full glory!  This tree never fails to provide us with our "fix" of fall color albeit a tad later than most other spectacular colorings.  In the late afternoon, the setting sun lights this tree with a glorious bit of golden orange.  At times, the tree almost seems to be on fire with brilliance! With the first hard rainfall and first brisk breeze after it reaches this stage, the leaves will all be on the ground.  There they will not be so pretty as it means I have to do some raking.  Leaves are pretty on the trees not on the ground!

  This particular tree has be "through the mill" with problems over the past decade.  Hurricane Katrina actually split the tree asunder and left it mangled beyond belief. The damage left open wounds that were soon besieged by wood-boring beetles.  Their gnawing about in the inner part of the tree nearly caused its death.  At the time, there were more important things for us to be doing (like repairing a hurricane damaged home).  I figured the tree would go the wayside and we would be sawing it up for firewood.  Instead, the tree somehow survived.  The borers left on their own or due to the rampage of woodpeckers.  Either way, the tree seems to be much healthier nowadays.  It is growing at a good rate and bearing tons of hickory nuts.  (Those I gather for firewood instead of using my tree!)

  Now this tree stands in its beauty and reminds us to never give in to adversity.  Misfortune can befall any of us but with a little resilience and spirit we can survive.  Hopefully, we can all be a bit like this tree and share a bit of beauty with the world.  The tree with its gorgeous show of color...us with loving hearts and kind smiles.  

Finding Fall!

  I fully enjoy looking at photographs of the lovely colors of fall.  I admire the bright colors of the leaves, frost covering hayfields and even the dried grasses.  I do enjoy the photographs.  That is about the only way I can view these things.  (Frost makes an appearance in winter but not fall.)  Here it is a rare occurrence to find bright red, orange and yellow leaves.  Popcorn trees or maples try their best and the Black Gums do occasionally pop a few red leaves just for show but most trees never even attempt the feat.  We have to be satisfied with whatever few colors we get.

  Today, however, I found fall!  While most folks are well on their way to winter, I found the Deep South's version of fall leaves.  I took Ms. Ez and her hurt foot out for a leisurely stroll about the hillside.  The old dog is getting stiff from being lazy so I figured a walk would do her good.  We wandered down along the marsh edge and then to the wild persimmon tree.  I ALWAYS have to meander past this tree!  As I grabbed a dozen or so of the little orange blobs, a bit of yellow caught my eye!  FALL LEAVES!  Yep, the young persimmon saplings that I have been saving, presented me with a lovely show!  Sure, it is only yellow but at least they are pretty! From where I stood, the six or seven young trees were framed by two oak trees.  The path to the trees looked so inviting that Ms. Ez and I immediately decided to change course and head that way.  What a peaceful little nook this was!  These particular trees, although only about a hundred feet from the house, were completely blocked from view.  I would have never seen them had it not been for my hankering for the tasty persimmons.

  According to the weather reports, we are going to jump right into winter here in a few weeks.  The Bayou is to be on the tail end of a cold front that is going to sweep down from our neighbors to the north.  I will be spending the rest of this week and the first part of next preparing the garden and greenhouse for the cold snap.  A stockpile of firewood is ready with more on the way.  It should be interesting to have cooler nights this early in the year.  Ponder..ponder...could those persimmon seeds be right?  Are their weather predictions holding true for a cold, wet (aka snowy) winter?  Regardless, I did get a sighting of fall thanks to the persimmon trees!

 

On to Fall!

Finally!  Finally, today I found the first inkling that perhaps Fall is on its way!  There have been a few mornings of late the the temperatures suggested that the elusive season could well be on its way but today was the first sure sign!  I found one...count it...one lovely leaf dressed in its fall attire!  Not an entire tree, mind you, but a single leaf!  Is it possible for a single leaf to elate a person to this point? Sure!  When it has been as hot and dry as this past month..sure..one leaf can, indeed, bring on a smile!  And it did!

The tiny leaf from the Black Gum tree came wafting down in the strong breeze that came with the rains earlier today.  I was outside trying to convince Ms. Ezzy that she really needed to chase the squirrels that were making short work of the sunflower seeds in the feeder.  Talking to this dog is sort of the same as having a chat with the proverbial brick wall.  Sometimes, I think I could have a much better conversation with a brick than this critter!  She has a knack of completely ignoring chatter when it does not suit her needs.  Still, chasing squirrels used to be her favorite pastime but now she would rather investigate a leaf.  The dog actually spotted the leaf before I did and she was most insistent on eating it!  Not my leaf!  This pretty multicolored leaf called for a photograph!  So, Ms. Ez was out of luck!  After I shooed her away from the leaf, I set to work getting the perfect picture.  I promptly forgot the dog. Usually, she is no problem as she is used to running free about the hillside. I figured she would eventually find that squirrel interesting and bound after it.  Not so!  When I finished my picture-taking minute, I searched for the dog.  By this time, she had found something interesting, alright...just not particularly what I had hoped.  She was sniffing mushrooms with all intentions of munching a few of those!  Oh, no!  You will not eat any more of those things!  I refuse to have to doctor you from stomach ailments due to stupidity!  Yes, I know that puffballs are supposed to be edible but, well, I am not taking the chance!  I shooed the dog away from the mushrooms.

I was rather relieved when this outing was cut short due to a sudden shower.  When the sprinkling started, Ms. Ez made a dash for the door.  She had enough of this outdoorsy stuff for the day! Silly dog!  I am happy with my one fall leaf and will not complain.  This is a harbinger of Fall and a bit of cooler weather..and..the rain is always welcome!

Painting the Bayou Red!

Ok..so I was roaming about the hill when I suddenly realized that it seems that we have a lot more color this fall than ever before. There is such an array of yellows, reds and purples in the trees that the Bayou looks more like one of those picture postcards from the Northeast! I wondered just what was up with this??? The first bunch of colored leaves I noticed were too far down in the Bayou for me to identify. Even though it was a nice brisk day, I knew better than to clamber down the hill into the marsh for a better look. It definitely has not been cold enough for the moccasins and alligators to be in hibernation! I thought perhaps these were just the maples and nothing more. Still there were so many different shades of colors that it lead me to believe it had to be more than one tree.

I hiked a bit further around the back behind the peach trees and found my answer! Here, I found a lot of small trees that made the hill look like a big patchwork quilt. These trees were only about three feet tall so I could get a good look at the leaves to make positive identifications! In this one area, there were the Red Maples with their purplish red five point leaves. These tall trees used to fill the creek area before multiple hurricanes wiped them out. I was glad to find some small ones and will stake them so they can perhaps replenish the lost stock. I miss looking out my kitchen window and seeing the fiery blooms in the spring, the deep reds of the seed pods during the summer, the wine-colored leaves of the fall and the bare branches in winter. One note about the Red Maple..the leaves are highly toxic to horses..even to the point of death. Since I have no horses, I am fully certain that my Red Maples will cause no harm!

Another happy find was the Sassafras! Their deeply lobed leaves ranged from green to bright red. These small trees will be tagged and moved to a better growing area later this winter. I have always liked the Sassafras Trees to be growing on the hill. Again being a brittle tree, hurricanes have taken their toll on this tree, too. Not many of the larger trees still stand so these small ones will be well cared for in hopes that they will survive. Later some of the leaves will be harvested to make file' (a thickening agent) for gumbo!

Some of the taller trees wearing their Fall Glory of Color, are Black Gums or Black Tupelos. These were not harmed by the storms simply because they are so unbelievably tough! The wood is very tough and hard to split but highly aromatic! These trees are seemingly indestructible!...with one exception..wood-borers! These insects reek havoc on any damaged tree and will eventually kill it!

Then, there are the invaders! The Chinese Tallow Trees that will take over an area are wearing their brightest colors this Fall. This might be an invasive species and might be considered a pest or menace tree but oh, my goodness!..the colors are phenomenal! I hit the perfect time of the day to photograph the leaves of this tree..late evening! The setting sun gave a glow to most everything around but the "Popcorn Tree" as it is known, appeared to be on fire! The colors were brilliant! During the fall color season, this tree fully exonerates itself from all its bad deeds during the rest of the year! It is gorgeous! These, too, will be transferred to a better spot where they will be grown as future firewood. It is a shame to think that the tree will be grown just to be cut, but with the reseeding rate and the rapid growth rate of this tree, it makes sense. In just two years, this tree when left in the wild, can multiple by the thousands. In that same two years, it will grow to a size that will be desirable for cutting. A renewable resource..I can have firewood to warm the Little Bayou House without harming any of the slower-growing hardwoods. Not to mention, if I plant a grove of these, my Falls will be full of color!