A Slow Fall
Autumn this year has not been very autumnal. From childhood I associate fall with a raw chill and leafy puddles. This year, however, has been unusually dry and warm, conditions associated with more modest seasonal color.
There is still some color to be seen, though.
The Spicebush (Lindera benzoin) leaves have turned a buttery yellow.
The Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) climbing up the telephone poll in the alley is now red and orange.
It’s starting to climb along my back fence as well.
Like a lot of trees and shrubs that normally show a dramatic color by now, the Highbush Cranberry (Viburnum opulus var. americanum) is still mostly green. There are a few spots of maroon red, though, and other areas are starting to turn.
‘Autumn Brilliance’ Serviceberry (Amelanchier x grandiflora) usually lives up to its name, but this year it dropped a lot of leaves early, diluting its normal visual impact.
If you look down the street in front of our house you can see that some of the trees have turned, though I would argue there is still less color than there would be in a typical late October.
But back to our own garden. In addition to the shrubs and trees, some perennials are showing foliage color, like this Solomon’s Seal (Polygonatum biflorum).
And let’s not forget the grasses. I have a clump of Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium)planted just this year, including the straight species and the varieties ‘Jazz’ and ‘Carousel’. Looking forward to seeing these grasses bulk up.
The straight species Little Bluestem may tend to flop, but I think its color is just as good as the cultivars.
There’s also a ‘Shenandoah’ Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) in this spot that I rescued from another location where it was being shaded out. I’m glad to say it is making a decent comeback.
There are two great big clumps of ‘Northwind’ Switchgreass in the Sidewalk Border. This year there seems to be a bit more orange in its normal tan fall color.
I wonder if this also is a result of the weather.
Finally, there is Northern Sea Oats (Chasmanthium latifolium), always a star among grasses in fall and late summer.
It should be mentioned that again Judy is out of town so I had to take these pictures myself. Grasses are tricky, aren’t they?
I am linking this post with Christina’s Garden Bloggers Foliage Day, at My Hesperides Garden. Check out her blog for more beautiful autumn foliage.
How is the fall color in your garden this year?
gardeninacity 
Those were terrific photos, even if you had to step in for the usual photographer. 🙂 You have some lovely fall color, especially the Virginia Creeper and the Viburnum. Nice.
Thanks. The VA Creeper does have good color.
It may not be as colourful as in other years but your autumn foliage looks very special to me. Thanks for joining GBFD this month Jason.
Always a pleasure.
Beautiful colours, your garden must be lovely right now…
It’s got some nice bits, but I’m not real excited by it right now to tell the truth. Do you get much autumn color in your garden?
It may be less vibrant than your usual October colour, Jason, but it’s still looking beautiful where you are. I love that street view. And grasses are such fabulous garden plants – your Switchgrass and Northern Sea Oats are looking lovely.
Thanks – I think some grasses really shine in this season.
You are always so attentive to all the changes and nuances of the garden….a great reminder to us all how to pay close attention…every day. Thank you for that!
You’re welcome! I think being a gardener makes us more attentive to things like weather and subtle changes in plants.
Everything is drying up in my garden. I can’t say there is a lot of color. Of course the Virginia Creeper is red, but most of the trees and things are seemingly drying up before doing a lot of pretty color. We are officially in a moderate drought. Seems more than moderate to me. Fall seems to be playing tag with summer. A day or two with cool fall weather then several days with temps in upper 70s and 80s. It has been an odd fall so far. I planted some Little Blue Stem this year. I hope it grows up to be a showy grass. It does have some color to it this fall.
I think you can count on Little Bluestem, it’s pretty tough as long as it gets sun. I hate drought – so frustrating.
Fall color here has been pretty bright but one is always reminded that Mother Nature calls the shots on how bright and how long it lasts. 🙂
Mother Nature calls the shots but I can still complain about her.
Love all the reds and yellows! ‘Shenandoah’ is one of my favorites, and it will look gorgeous when it gets nice and big. I don’t think we’ve had quite as many colors as usual due to the dry summer, but we still have a pretty good show. Fall is in full swing!
Yes it is! I’m really pleased that this ‘Shenandoah’ has returned from death’s door. Hoping it will bulk up considerably next year.
Despite the fact you say it’s slow there Jason, your garden and surrounds are not without autumn/fall interest. I love the shot looking down the street and the tunnel effect of the trees. A proper tree lined avenue.
We live in an “older” neighborhood (at least by local standards), and so we have a lot of big street trees. It’s something I do love about the area.
We are having similar conditions, after a wet summer the autumn weather has been much better and many plants are still flowering strongly whereas in a typical year they would be going over. Interesting to see your Solomon’s Seal is free from its sawfly, don’t you have it over there?
I never heard of Solomon’s Seal getting sawfly, maybe it can be a problem here but I’ve never seen it.
The colors here have been outstanding this year which was a surprise after a very dry summer. I wonder why yours haven’t done better. Maybe they’ll come along later than usual.
We’ll have to wait and see. Some rain might help.
Crazy year: nothing seems to be performing as expected. Your street is looking pretty festive and I guess we can always count on Virginia creeper.
Hoping for some rain and cooler weather to make things feel more normal.
You do have some marvelous colour, I loved the Virginia creeper and was really impressed by all those wonderful trees lining your street! Our autumn has been mild and dry so the colours here have been muted compared to other years.xxx
Thanks. We’re lucky to have all those big old street trees.
I would much rather have a chilly autumn — not frosty, but crisp. I love the smell and sound of fallen leaves. Now that I’m in Zone 10, though, autumn still feels like summer — but there are some very subtle changes. Still, I miss the crisp. 🙂
You can always take an autumn vacation up North!
Hello Jason, the view down your street looks very pretty with the greens, pinks and oranges and we would call that really good autumn colour so I can only imagine the display you are used to seeing. We’ve recently had cold nights but warm days which has made this year’s autumn display better than usual, but it still cannot compare.
I do think North America (especially in the northeast) has the world’s best autumn color.
Fall has been slower here than usual….frost has been minimal and flowers still blooming….cool weather and wonderful foliage. Your fall looks splendid Jason!
Still waiting for a hard frost around here.
Yes, strange fall. I’m thankful for the mild weather, but sad that the color changes happened in the blink of an eye. Beautiful photos, Jason. I noticed that the Virginia Creeper seemed especially colorful this year for some reason. I haven’t noticed much color on my Cranberrybush Viburnum, so I’ll have to check it tomorrow.
Do the berries on your Cranberrybush Viburnum get eaten up as soon as they turn red?
I envy you your Spicebush–I planted one one year; the first winter it died back by half and the 2nd winter finished it. Out here, away from the lake, I think it needs a protected location. I also envy Evanston’s wonderful street trees–ours are so much sparser and badly pruned.
Well, at least that gives you sunnier parkways. The Spicebush is a fine shrub, but I haven’t seen a single Spicebush Swallowtail butterfly.
Wow, that cranberry viburnum is an eye-catcher. Autumn colors seemed late here, but finally this past weekend the leaves had changed.
The Cranberrybush can have excellent color, though it varies quite a bit depending on conditions.