Turning

 Here in the city Up North there are still a few very golden trees hanging onto their leaves.  In the neighboring big city residents can pile leaves up next to the street and the city comes by with a huge leaf sucker upper and gets rid of them!  How perfect is that!

Back at home the Tamaracks or Larch have turned into a golden glow.

Far Guy had his second radiation treatment.  He had to wait quite a long time because one radiation delivery machine was not available..they have two...so that makes everyone wait.  Far Guy is not such a good waiting person anymore.   I dropped him off at the door because parking is just the most miserable thing around the Cancer Center...I parked a block away and waited for him to text me when he was done.   I read my book for book club while I waited.

I hear that the S word is being mentioned for the weekend...the weather is turning to Winter just like that! 

I am still not happy with the Falling Back...it makes me tired and cranky.

Far Side

Tamarack

 The far tree is Larix laricina also known as Tamarack or Larch. 

Their needles turn from green to a faded green to bright gold this time of year.  Then the needles fall off.  Tamarack is a deciduous conifer.  

Most certainly a interesting tree...that will never be cut down for a Christmas tree.

Not much new here...Far Guy turned all the clocks back and changed the batteries in the smoke detectors.  We need a new CO2 detector as it would not stop chirping when he changed the batteries...they are only good for a few years. 

Far Side

Trails on Saturday

 On Saturday we decided to go on an adventure.  We wanted to see if we could navigate from our house to my cousins house on the backwoods trails. 

The Popples still have some golden leaves.  Aspen ...Piss Popple ...same thing.

The Tamaracks  (some people call them Larch) are turning golden.

 Yes, we found my cousin's home...he lives just off one of the main trails.  We got caught up on some family news and got to meet one of their band new grandsons...they had two grandsons born just a few weeks apart.   They also saved some Purple Coneflower seeds for us.  

Back at home I have been working on catching up on the Christmas ornaments.  I am back on track again with 54 completed....just about half done! 

Far Side

Busy Day

Saturday was a busy day.  We made a trip to the landfill...they are only open on Saturday now.  We go about once every three weeks.   I did some laundry, washed some windows and then had a short nap and went out to mulch more leaves...this is the 5th mulching.  One or two more times should do it!

Mulching.  I have special blades on my lawn mower, the blades pulverize the leaves...basically most of the leaves turn into dust....it makes a great natural fertilizer for your lawn!  We have mainly Oaks here, Red, White and Burr Oak.  If the leaves are left on the lawn over the winter it is a real mess come spring.  It is bad enough that the White Oaks keep many of their leaves all winter so you still have leaves to take care of in the spring.  A heavy bunch of Oak leaves will mold and kill your grass.  Mulching blades also come in handy taking care of grass clippings...they are all returned to the grass in tiny pieces.

Toward evening we met Jen, Andy and Jonas 60 miles north of us for supper and returned the dogs to their rightful owners.  Jonas is the foreign exchange student from Belgium...he is a pleasant young man, we enjoy visiting with him.  They had all been traveling in Northern Minnesota....and we took care of Miss Miney and Little Elvis for them.

Tamarack or Larch are turning their golden fall color.

I am still tired.  That Flu Shot knocked the stuffins right out of me.
Far Side

Autumn Joy

I have a Sedum called Autumn Joy.  Last winter was real hard on it but it still had a couple of blooms.

Usually it is covered in bees in the fall…not so much this year.

Another joy of autumn is the Tamarack trees or “Larch”  they are a deciduous conifer.  It means they lose their needles and grow new ones next spring.  The go through the winter totally naked and dead looking.

Ashley’s Road

That last golden hour of sunlight in the evening illuminates the golden trees.

Golden

One day this week we had sunshine.  It was a day to celebrate!  The sun felt so good!  It almost blinded me, I had to run for my sunglasses.

Chance and I captured the Tamaracks (Larix laricina) or Larch as they changed color.  Tamaracks are coniferous and deciduous.  Their needle like leaves turn a golden yellow in the Fall and drop to the ground.  They will appear naked and dead all winter long. In the spring the buds will pop and form greenish blue needle like leaves.

A familiar road just two miles from our home.

My other baby brother says “When the Tamaracks lose their needles we have two weeks till it snows.”  We will see.

I finished the rest of the leaf mulching yesterday.  I have a few areas yet to rake, if they get done fine, if not it will wait until spring.  The yard looks good, the leaves are pretty much gone from the trees.  The crazy wind on Friday our sunshiny day blew most of them down.

Far Guy felt good enough to take us all for a ride yesterday. No sun, only clouds.

After the Tamaracks are done we will just have brown, grey and then white to celebrate.

So I will embrace the golden while it lasts:)

Tamarack

I like trees because they seem more resigned to the way they have to live than other things do. ~Willa Cather, 1913

The Tamarack or Larch..it's scientific name is Larix laricina. It is a Northern, cold climate tree. It is a deciduous evergreen..confusing..all it means is that it loses it's needles every fall..looks deader than a doornail all winter and in the spring..the needles come back again..first as a soft green haze..becoming less hazy with every spring day. Nothing spectacular happens with this tree until Autumn. In Minnesota when every other tree has done it's thing, all the leaves have colored up and fallen to the ground, or turned an ugly brown color while clinging to it's branches for dear life. It is time for the Tamarack.

The soft needles turn a golden yellow, it is like a million little sunbeams are caught up in these trees.

I do believe that the Tamaracks are anti social, they want the stage all to themselves. They want me to ooh and ahhh.. I have to admit they put on one heck of a show.

Tamarack usually grows in swamps or low lying areas, however I believe there are a few used as ornamental trees in Fargo, ND. If you can get past the Charlie Brown winter time look. Needless to say they are not grown for Christmas Trees, perhaps it is their silent protest against that barbaric practice. Wood from the Tamarack is used to make beautiful floors. It can be used for lumber. It can also be used for firewood, although you best not use it in one of those decorative fireplaces where the pretty little birch bark logs lie in repose. It burns way too warm.. and will probably warp your fireplace. We have used it in our outdoor wood stove, it is built to withstand the higher temperatures.

Tamaracks aglow..just one more sign that Fall is well underway and Winter is not far behind:)