The Santa Ana winds are blowing again and the leaves of the deciduous trees are quickly falling so I thought it'd be a good idea to share what passes for autumn color here while it lasts. We don't get cold enough to experience the kind of foliage color that the northeastern parts of the country are famous for, although the nights feel cold to us!
My largest Japanese maple, an Acer palmatum 'Sango Kaku', colored up earlier in the season and is now a mass of dry brown leaves. I completely missed the colorful leaves of the peach tree on our back slope so I haven't included either in this post but here are the rest:
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The smoke tree, Cotinus coggygria 'Royal Purple', had lost most of its leaves too by the time I got around to photographing it
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This persimmon tree, Diospyros kaki 'Fuyu', offers the most rewarding color in my garden this time of year. I harvested a bumper crop of the fruit this year, giving most of it away to friends and neighbors.
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Not a plant known for its fall color but the foliage of Leptospermum 'Copper Glow' is darker at this time of year
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This isn't foliage at all but rather the seedpods of Magnolia grandiflora, which drop in substantial numbers this time of year. The birds and squirrels seem to have a taste for the bright red seeds embedded in the pods.
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I love the bright colored leaves on this ornamental pear, Pyrus calleryana, although I could do without the small fruits that fall with them. I've never even seen the birds eat the fruit.
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My blueberry bushes are in need of pruning but this Vaccinium corymbosum 'Bountiful Blue' develops pretty pink foliage in cooler weather
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I've been trying to get rid of this noID Wisteria ever since we moved in. I haven't yet succeeded but the plant does provide a little fall color.
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The Ginkgo tree we planted last year has been a disappointment. Two late heatwaves, arriving back-to-back, burned the tree's leaves a dismal brown and caused them to drop prematurely. Later the onset of a little rain and cooler temperatures brought out a small amount of spring-like green leaves that have continued to hang on.
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The fresh leaves of Ginkgo biloba 'Autumn Gold' haven't turned gold nor fallen yet. I hope this flush doesn't prevent the tree from leafing out more fully come spring.
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By comparison, my neighbor's front garden provides a lot of color.
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My neighbor referred to these trees as sugar maples once. While they have maple-like leaves, I'm pretty sure the majority are Liquidambars with a couple of Ginkgos in the mix.
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There's another group of them on the other side of the driveway
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Closeups of the leaves and, more specifically the spiky seedpods, make it clear this isn't a maple as maple seedpods, called samaras, have more delicate helicopter shapes
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The only tree in the section behind the hedge I can identify is the fig tree, with its glowing yellow leaves
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This noID tree has redder foliage than the rest. I haven't seen it up close so I don't know if it has the seedpods that characterize Liquidambers. It's possible it could be a silver maple (Acer saccharinum), which, unlike a sugar maple, is suitable to our climate, at least according to my Sunset Western Garden Book.
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That's it for me this week. The rain that was in the forecast for early next week sadly appears to have evaporated, although there's a chance of some later that week. Fingers crossed.
All material © 2012-2022by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
