Perhaps I'm dating myself, but this time of year that old song by The Byrds, with lyrics adapted from Ecclesiastes, comes to mind: "To every thing, turn turn turn, there is a season, turn turn turn."
In two weeks we've gone from early to late autumn at Struan Farm. The oaks and black walnuts have lost their leaves, while the Nyssa sylvatica and Dawn Redwood are now taking their turns at peak color:
I dug out the tree book to do a bit of homework on the Nyssa, and learned that it is commonly called "Tupelo" or "Black Gum." Nyssa was a water nymph, and her name has been commemorated in a whole genus of water loving trees. We especially love the Nyssa for its brilliant red leaves in autumn, it's a gorgeous specimen that makes the view from The Homestead's bedroom window quite special right now:
Not to be outdone, down at the pond the Strawberry Tree ("Arbutus") is weighed down and sharing its autumn bounty with the birds:
And yes, the free range pests turkeys are still gorging on the remaining crabapples. I counted 22 wandering in the Pet Paddock on Saturday (TWENTY TWO).
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