Fall afternoon walk

On Sunday afternoon, my wife and I took a leisurely walk through our extended neighborhood. The weather was as nice as a day in late fall can be, and I made a conscious effort to enjoy all the wonderful things I love about this time of year. Very soon—tonight, in fact—the weather will change dramatically, and the wind and rain that are about to descend on us will blow the remaining leaves out of the trees.

121125_SouthDavis_02

Greenbelt near our house; the paved “road” is actually a path for bikes and pedestrians

121125_SouthDavis_10

Greenbelt near our house

121125_SouthDavis_04

Amazing how quickly the grass grows as soon as we have our first fall rains!

121125_SouthDavis_08

The Sacramento Valley isn’t exactly a fall color destination..

121125_SouthDavis_06

…but there are pockets of color…

121125_SouthDavis_11

…even in public spaces

121125_SouthDavis_California-buckeye_01

California buckeye (Aesculus californica), always the first shrub to lose its foliage—it starts to turn brown as early as August!

121125_SouthDavis_Western-redbud_01

Western redbud (Cercis occidentalis)

121125_SouthDavis_26

Residential fall color

121125_SouthDavis_40

White birch (Betula pendula)

121125_SouthDavis_21

Pebbles and red leaves

121125_SouthDavis_27

Calendula (Calendula officinalis) surrounded by fallen leaves

121125_SouthDavis_22

Dead palm tree trunk; a testament to wishful thinking!

121125_SouthDavis_43

The moss on the rock is thick and lush now; in the heat of summer it’s flat and withered

121125_SouthDavis_42

Still blooming: lantana (Lantana camera or hybrid) along a dry creek in a front yard

121125_SouthDavis_coyote_bush_04

In peak bloom: coyote bush (Baccharis pilularis)

121125_SouthDavis_coyote_bush_05121125_SouthDavis_coyote_bush_02

Coyote bush flowers

We also came across a beautifully landscaped front yard sporting not one, not two, but four of my favorite leucadendrons. Check this post for details and photos.

Comments

  1. Thank you! I do love to see what my fellow garden bloggers enjoy on their walks, since I've forced you all to come along on several of mine. So that palm. It looks like a Trachycarpus trunk....those aren't happy in your part of the world?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'll do more posts like this one. I love walking through different neighborhoods but photography is tough in the summer when the light is so harsh; much easier now with the softer light of fall and winter.

      Trachycarpus is perfectly hardy here--in fact, there are two healthy specimens in the same planting strip. My comment about "wishful thinking" referred to the homeowners possibly thinking that this trunk, which looks quite dead to me, will sprout healthy new foliage one of these days. I don't think that will happen.

      Delete
  2. Thanks for taking us along Gerhard! You live in a nice, green area with plenty of plants and well maintained front gardens. I quite like the bare framework of deciduous trees and shrubs during autumn and winter, they are pretty in their own right.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree! For me, one of the most exciting sights of winter are bare trees.

      Delete
  3. That greenbelt is such a treasure -- you're lucky to have something like that nearby!

    During fall and winter it's important to get out and enjoy the nice days when they appear.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Right now (10:40 am) it's so dark we need the lights on and it's pouring like there's no tomorrow. Makes me glad we took that walk on Sunday!

      Delete
  4. Thank you for taking us with you on your walk. You do have great colors and beautiful neighborhood.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love that shot of the stones with the red leaves! Excellent post!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment