Fall color around town

Our part of California isn’t exactly known for stunning fall color. Most of the trees native to the Sacramento Valley simply turn a non-descript brown. Fortunately, there are plenty of non-native trees planted all over Davis that do provide pops of color. Many of them are at their peak, as you will see below, but some are just starting:

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College Park

This means that there’ll be good color for another few weeks, provided we don’t get a lot of wind that would knock the leaves off the trees.

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Few trees produce more brilliant shades of orange than the Chinese pistache. Here’s a whole row of them:

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Fall color and succulents? A great combination:

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The weather on Saturday afternoon was perfect for taking photos.

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Leaves come to life when backlit against the sun.

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My favorite tree for fall color (and a favorite year round) is the ginkgo. Its yellow leaves against the blue sky are pure magic.

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How about agaves, aloes and cacti with a ginkgo in the distance:

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More yellows…

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…oranges…

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Chinese pistache berries

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…and reds:

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The last photo is my favorite of the day.

I’m glad I took the time to go exploring on Saturday afternoon. I ended up in some areas of town I’d never been before, and I saw some beautiful trees!

Comments

  1. Wonderful photos! I love the colors on the Chinese pistache trees. I've been thinking of planting at least one in my garden. These photos are helping to convince me.

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    1. Evan, they make great trees, not just in the fall. They're slow growers, though, so buy the biggest specimen you can afford.

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  2. Imported trees or not, you've got fabulous fall color. We've got nada.

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  3. More color than I expected, and more than we had around here! Ours tend to drop pretty quickly after turning too.

    That last photo: hummingbird cloud! (attracted by the reds in that tree)

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    1. I still don't see a hummingbird, isn't that weird? The cloud looks like a seahorse to me.

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  4. Wow! no need to go Eastcoast for fall colors. I will just have to drive to Davis. :)

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  5. Wow! So much better than here. Also amazing is the size and health of the Pistache trees--there are a few around here about 1/4th the size and with 1/4th the foliage and none of the color. There are dazzling Ginkos in So Cal, but not this year...that darn drought thingy again.

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    1. I was very surprised that we have such great color this year. Maybe it was the recent rains?

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  6. Love ginkgos so much! Beautiful photos, and the hummingbird cloud is awesome.

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    1. The brilliant yellow of ginkgos in the fall is one of nature's greatest sights in my book.

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