Autumn is rapidly advancing with the leaves of deciduous
plants changing from green to a rainbow of red orange and yellow before they
fall to the ground. Although, many leaves are hanging on with the sunny weather
of the past week and their changing colours can be observed close-up.
This vine against the garden wall (left) shows the
green pigments being withdrawn from the leaves revealing the underlying red and
yellow pigments. The result is varying combinations of greens, yellows and
reds, especially showing the veins. Not only leaves are changing colour, as
they ripen berries turn bright red colours to attract birds. In the middle the glossy
drupes of a Hawthorn. This cherry tree is almost ablaze as the leaves have all
turned a bright orange-red.
The leaves that have fallen are starting to carpet the
ground. These yellow leaves of the Common Ash obscure the park path. The grass
underneath the trees in the park are sprinkled with fallen leaves. The leaves
of ornamental cherries (middle) show a range of colours, ranging from yellow via
peach to deep red. The fallen leaves of this red-leaved Norway Maple show how
the leaves actually become softer in colour, changing from a deep plum purple
to a wine red and eventually a deep bronze.
This Oak-leaved Hydrangea, a coarse woodland shrub
from the U.S., turns wine red and purple in autumn. The leaves sometimes don’t
drop of but dry on the stalks, only to be pushed aside by the fresh leaves
emerging in spring. In the middle the leaves of Persian Ironwood (Parrotia)
showing all shades between yellow and deep red, often in a single leaf. In
contrast the leaves of the Spindle bush (right) all turn a uniform candy pink,
which contrasts sharply with the last deep orange berries.
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