Fall Color

Just wanted to share some color from my front yard.

In a relatively new neighborhood, there aren't very many established trees. In fact my poplar in the background is the biggest tree on the street. It's turning yellow up the middle and threatening golden rain any day. My maple in the foreground is a pretty reddish brown and I'm proud to say it has grown at least 4 feet this year! It will be a nice mature tree someday.

My favorite are the beautiful burning bushes, also known as Euonymus alata 'Compactus'. They are so vibrant!!

I didn't take pictures but I started cleaning up my garden this weekend. I gave 5 HUGE zucchini to my sister and I am tempted to rip the plants out to STOP production! We picked another pumpkin and pulled up all the vines that had encroached on the lawn over the summer. This week is it supposed to freeze for the first time, so everything will be looking pretty shabby! It's been a fun year, but I am almost ready for the clean, bare soil.

Why do leaves change color?

I have been thinking about this question a lot in the last few weeks. Some say it's the days getting shorter (less light) and others say it's fall temperatures dropping. The answer is that it's a combination.

This is in Provo Canyon last year. The colors were fiery and vibrant. This year (on our recent trip to Park City) I was a little disappointed that show was not so showy. This website infers that it's the lack of cooler temperatures this fall (since it has been almost 90 until yesterday!) that have caused the colors to be less intense.

So now you know.