10/29/09 FALL COLORS ABOUND

FALL COLORS IN THE RAIN
'AUTUMN BLAZE' HYBRID MAPLES, SUGAR MAPLE, PAPER BIRCH, COLORADO SPRUCE
FRONT YARD OF GARDEN VIEW
Tuesday, 8:00 AM. 43 degrees, wind W, moderate. The channel is crawling, the sky is overcast and it is raining. There is .3” of rain in the gage but the barometer predicts sunny skies, maybe by evening.
The colors are beautiful if muted today, and leaves are dropping with the rain. Colors do not seem as vivid this year, and many sugar maples are reddish like the red maples, making them difficult to tell apart at a distance. I think the oaks will be spectacular this year, however. Each autumn has its own iteration of fall color. The tamaracks in the yard are turning and will be bright gold in a day or two.