Acer Palmatum in Autumn

I love Autumn… especially this year. It’s most definitely been the best time to get outside, walk through the woods and take photos of trees and leaves. It’s been mild and sunny in Lancashire and the trees around here have been simply stunning.

I learned a big lesson this month.The beauty of trees is ephemeral. Well I knew that… but seriously once autumn sets in some of the changes happen so quickly, especially to Acers.  One day a tree is green and quite ordinary, the next it’s turning red and yellow and a few days later the leaves are crispy and curled.

This is Acer palmatum.  We grow Acers in our garden. They start off the year looking beautiful but soon turn crispy because it’s so windy here. This one is growing in a sheltered spot in a nearby wood.
I photographed the same tree to see how quickly the colours and texture changed as all the nutrients from the leaves returned to the tree roots. Here it is on 2nd November 2014.
  

And here it is just three days later on 5th November.
More crisp than leaf I would say!

There are quite a few trees I’ve missed this year just because I thought I had plenty of time to go back with my camera.
So the big lesson for me to take away from this year is …
Get outside and make the most of autumn!

Luckily there’s always next year.  I’m looking forward to it already.

Gillian o_O