Fall Colours – Patricia McLellan's Blog

A while ago my daughter asked me if the trees here were starting to change colour yet and though the answer at the time (about the middle of September) was “no”, this blog is an answer to her question. The pictures were taken on the 1st of October, 2021, either on our own lot or on my walk up to a local dairy to buy milk.

I love the different seasons we have where we live. There are four distinct seasons and each has its own characteristics. Fall, or autumn, is when the nights get cooler, some of the trees loose their leaves and most flowers have gone to seed. Where we live there are often storms with a lot of wind and rain. There is also less and less daylight each day until we get to the winter solstice. Geese are flying south and other migratory birds disappear for a few months.

Some bushes have a lot of colour to them. The leaves on these ones turn red and there are black berries. I think this bush is *aronia*, or black chokeberry.

Meteoriologists in Norway have their own definition of fall: “Når døgnmiddeltemperaturen er mellom 0 og 10 grader og temperaturtendensen er fallende gjennom perioden, da er det høst, sier klimaforsker Stein Kristiansen ved Meteorologisk institutt.” (source) – “When the average daily temperature is between 0 and 10 degrees Celsius, and the temperatures are generally falling, then it is fall/autumn, says climate researcher Stein Kristiansen from The Norwegian Meteorological Institute (website).

This year we have not been below 4 degrees Celsius at night and daytime temperatures have been between 10 and 15 degrees Celsius. I think the amount of daylight affects trees too. Many smaller plants die off once their seeds have been made. If we have a very dry summer, I notice that the birch trees will lose leaves even in July or August to save water.

Some of the fields are still green, but where the grains have been harvested the field is now a yellowish brown. Our woods are a combination of deciduous trees (which lose their leaves) and coniferous trees (which retain needles all winter, though they also shed some of their needles at this time of year). Also notice the red stick at the side of the road. It serves a dual purpose: first to tell drivers at night where the edge of the road is and second, to tell those who plough the snow in the winter where the edge of the road is.

These bushes lay close to the ground, but the house owner has chosen four types of bushes that each give a different colour to the slope at this time of year.

Trees that stand alone, like this birch tree, can often have more vivid colours.

Grasses that are not cut, turn yellow as the seeds mature. The green fields are grass fields that are cut to provide fodder for cows and they will stay green all winter, or until ploughed.

However, I was also surprised to see some flowers still blooming.

A dandelion was having a second blooming.

Red clover was still blooming along the side of the road.

*Achillea millefolium*. This is very common here, especially along roads. It is called common yarrow in English and *ryllik* in Norwegian.

In my own garden, plants are also turning various colours as their lifetimes are over. The ones you see here are all perennials and most of them will come up from the roots next spring.

Last of all, we think of the fall season as the time of year that the leaves fall off the trees. In this area of our yard, the trees have already gotten a good start at getting rid of their leaves and giving the gardener something to do.

We are only at the beginning of fall now. The next two months will show even more changes in nature around us, as the days grow shorter and the temperature drops. More trees will change colour. More leaves will fall, as not all trees lose their leaves at the same time. While the days are still nice, I will continue to enjoy walks several times a week.

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