As autumn’s colors have wrapped us in a cloth of color we have peeked into the foliage around the gardening blogosphere. Participants from Canada to Florida and Illinois to England have offered up wonderful illustrations of fall’s foremost feature. It’s time to take a look back and see where all that fall color came from and where it went! I’ve moved the summaries I wrote about each Fall Color post into this one giant post. Now you can travel easily around North America and Europe to see all those colors. You had better bookmark this post for those cold and wet winter days when the sun isn’t shining and you need a color fix to brighten your day!
Germany
For those of you who might like a little European feel for fall go visit Heiner’s post in Otterstedt, Germany not far from Bremen. Heiner took some very nice pictures of Otterstedt’s main street. I really wish my understanding of the German language was better (my last German class was nearly 16 years ago!). Even if you don’t speak German the view of the fall colors will transcend any language barrier!
England
Take another trip overseas to Veg Plotting in Chippenham, England where VP has taken some great shots of the fall colors and pieced them together in a collage for us to see. Colorful smoke trees and Japanese maples are certainly brightening up what could be a vintage year for autumn colors in England!
What a gift to be surrounded by all the wonderful scenery that Patientgardener is! Over in Malverns, England (in Worchestershire) the chestnut and beech trees are showing their autumnal changes. You even get a peak at some sweetgum trees which are another of my favorites for fall color. (I can forgive them for the seed balls in exchange for that fall color!) So stop on over and say hi to Patientgardener!
Take a road north to visit the wonderful fall colors in Nova Scotia with Nancy of Soliloquy. Canada is where the fall colors start their colorful journey to the south and we are lucky to have Nancy to show us her area’s best fall foliage. She brings us through rivers and streams and shows us limestone cliffs and hardwood forests on a trip to her parent’s house for Thanksgiving dinner. My personal favorite picture would be the one of the road underneath a canopy of color. The fall foliage is spectacular and the sunset at the end couldn’t be more fitting!
Today’s fall color update comes to us from Algonquin Park in Northern Ontario. Dan, who writes the blog Urban Veggie Garden Blog, returned from his trip with some amazing wildlife shots among the cool colors of a Canadian autumn. The heron in the picture to the right is the shot I find the most impressive. I’m never able to get them to stand still, or rather stand period! Dan takes us around the Ragged Falls, Muskoka Falls and Smoke Lake while showing us pictures of fascinating wildlife like moose, chipmunks, red-breatsed merganser ducks, and a wild turkey that has so far escaped the dinner table!
Maine
Our first entry into the Garden Blogger Fall Color Project comes to us from the great state of Maine. Dawn, who writes with Tina and Skeeter at In the Garden, is showing us some fantastic fall color scenes around her area. She takes us through pictures from the foothills near her home to Keoka Lake and Bear Mountain Pond. She even sneaks in some pictures of wild turkeys, they better find a good hiding spot before November! Of all the great pictures Dawn took my favorites are the one on the left here of the cresting water of the Crooked River and the mountain behind Moose Pond. There’s just something about water, mountains, and fall colors that is hard to resist!
In Maine Sarah, a professional writer and blogger of Sarah Laurence Blog, takes us on a weekend hiking trip into the mountains of Maine. The photographs of fall colors in Maine are simply stunning. While the climb itself might take your breath away the views would do the same. The red and gold of the leaves stand out from the rocky mountainside that her family climbed proving that the journey to that vista was well worth the effort!
New York
If you’ve ever imagined driving or walking down a rustic lane with a canopy of colorful trees cascading overhead the visit Louise in New York at the Buddy Garden Blog. She has taken some fantastic pictures at the Storm King Art Center in Mountainville, New York. Two of her images are particularly striking to me because of the creativity of the shots. While all the pictures are great the photo of the lone bare tree against the azure blue background of the autumn sky really stands out. The photo of the park bench surrounded by the fallen leaves littered on the ground also represents the fall season extremely well!
The next stop on the fall color tour takes us to Ithaca, New York and the blog Ellis Hollow written by Craig. Craig has offered up several posts that characterize fall so well. From the frost covered foliage to the flame colored ivy crawling and cascading on the buildings around Cornell University there is plenty to see. Back lit ornamental grasses, seed heads and frosted flowers will fill you with a wonderful vision of fall in all its many facets.
Elizabeth over at Gardenrant, a well known writer and garden blogger, has posted some picturesque fall photos for the Garden Blogger Fall Color Project. What could epitomize fall more than cobblestone buildings and walls mixed with glorious maples in the rustic farmlands of Route 104 in New York. Farming implements and woodpiles appear in peaceful fall scenes. Just what we like to see in the fall! Elizabeth risked life and limb to bring us these pictures, so go visit and see what New York color she’s found!
If you travel to upstate New York to visit Kerri’s Garden at Colors of the Garden (a very appropriate name, don’t you think?) you will get a grand tour of the New York Countryside in October. Peak colors of red, orange, and gold bathe the farmsteads and rolling pastureland with the glory of fall. From the woods to the farms there are plenty of sights to see!
Don’t forget to journey up to Kalamazoo, Michigan and the blog Through the Looking Glass where Jelly Fish Bay is traveling on a roadtrip in the search for fall colors. Playing hookey to search for fall colors is definitely worth it (says the former teacher)! You’ll see the glowing sumacs and the vibrant colors of a northern fall. The last stop by the river brings to great day trip to a close!
Vermont
George in Vermont (The Vermont Gardener and Vermont Gardens) has posted some wonderful colors of the Vermont wilderness. Filled with maples, the hills appear to be on fire with the autumn foliage turning. With photos of places like Marshfield Pond and Osmore Pond you start to think thoughts of camping and sitting by a fireside on a cool autumn day sipping hot chocolate or apple cider. Seeing the countryside of Vermont makes me wish I could take a fall road trip. For now the blogosphere will have to do!
New York isn’t the only new place to visit, how about New England? JJ’s recent vacation to New England couldn’t have come at a a better time. The leaves were peaking through Vermont, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and of course New York! Picturesque river gorges and mountains of fall color await you at JJ’s blog, We’re Going to Need a Bigger Pot. As JJ asks “Got Autumn?”
Connecticut
Steve Silk and his new blog, Chatter Valley Gardens, are bringing us an array of fall treats. His photos of Japanese maples are nothing short of an elegant painting and his post on seed pods will definitely catch your eye!
New Jersey
Another East Coast blogger is showing off some fall color! Heirloom gardener in New Jersey has several posts with some very nice color displays. The golden autumn leaves of the hickory trees, the Japanese katsura tree and the fall blooms and colors of an autumn cherry are all there to delight all fellow leaf peepers! Go visit the Heirloom gardener and her fall colors!
Rhode Island
Over at Ledge and Gardens in Rhode Island Layanee has put together a post about my favorite trees, maples! Layanee’s maples are mostly Japanese maples and their color is nothing short of awesome. From orange to red to gold-green these maples don’t disappoint for fall color. Included in her post are the Acer palmatum varieties ‘Omurayama’ and ‘Osakasuki’, as well as Acer japonicum ‘aconitifolium’, Acer shirasawanum ‘Aureum’, and Acer griseum. It just goes to prove that no matter what variety it is, it’s hard to beat a maple for fall color!
Pennsylvania
TC’s (the Write Gardener) fall colors come from Western Pennsylvania,one area of the country that I know has fantastic fall colors, afterall it is Steeler Country! His photos were taken within a mile of his home and are definitely worth a look. Scenery like that makes you want to stay outdoors all day!
Nancy Ondra from Pennsylvania, a gardening author and blogger at Hayefield and Gardening Gone Wild, is displaying the colors of a South Eastern Pennsylvania autumn. From the water shots by Lake Nockamixon to the land near her parent’s farm you can enjoy the blazing colors of sugar maples, red maples, sassafras, and evergreen junipers. Nan’s photos of fall show a wonderful autumn painting of Pennsylvania!
One of the greatest places to find fall color is on the campuses of our country’s learning institutions. Each of these beacons of knowledge are aesthetically landscaped to entice new students to come and to give the students and faculty that attend a sense of nature to enhance their education. This idea is alive at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania. At the Scott Arboretum blog Becky shows us the reds and oranges of maples, golden amsonias, and pathways of fall color beneath tall tulip poplar trees. The outdoor amphitheater would be a wonderful place to have a class, although I might pay more attention to the trees and the bounty of fall color than to the professor!
Iowa
Who can compete with the flaming red color of the burning bush? It’s most notable trait is peaking this time of the year over at Shady Gardener’s Blog! The blazing burning bushes mixed with the golden yellow of a redbud filled with pods is a perfect picture for the fall season. Check in and see if you can identify the mystery plant with the purplish foliage!
Jump on over to Our Little Acre to see the fall colors! Not my acre, Kylee’s! She has viburnums, a gingko, sumacs, and many other plants that are showing some great fall foliage. The bald cypress and the beautyberry are two that I will have to add to our garden!Indiana
How about a trip to Indiana to visit Carol’s Fall colors (May Dream’s Gardens)? The viburnums are glowing and the maples are blazing! You can also get a bit of the yellows in her Amsonia. Carol also brings the science behind the color change to mind for a post that is both fun to look at and great to learn from!
Mr. McGregor’s Daughter in Chicago, Illinois is observing some really fantastic fall color. The red oaks are competing with the maples for an extraordinary autumn show. Usually the maples win hands down but as you can see in her photographs the oak is definitely holding its own. Then she brings us into the garden to show us the fall color on her dogwood, geraniums and several other plants. You definitely must visit her sweet home Chicago!
Kara in West Virginia, who blogs on the blog Garden Vines, posted a very nice shot of the West Virginia countryside in autumn. While we all know that fall colors can be hit or miss, Kara was able to capture a gorgeous view of the landscape despite the fall colors not being at their best. Often lack of rain and extra hot summers lead to a lackluster fall color performance but I think you’ll find her landscape photo to be a very picturesque image of fall!
Our second submission for the Garden Blogger Fall Color Project comes to us from Anna who put together a really neat slide show of her trip. Anna’s trip to the Shanendoah Valley in Virgina is full of great Autumn photos from the old grist mill along Silver Lake to the mountains of Virginia. She also shows us a visit to a craft fair in Dayton and several beautiful shots of the waters around the lake. Definitely take a visit to Anna’s Fall Color Post!
Breaking News: Fall Color has reached Virginia! Racquel the Perennial Garden Lover has sited some fall color in her neighborhood. Photos of a red oak and the borrowed view of her neighbors’ trees herald the southward march of the fall colors. Go visit her photos and share the fall color experience in Virginia!
Peaceful and tranquil beauty grace the grounds of Gail’s Garden, the blogger who gardens in Clay and Limestone. Golden yellows of the leaves join the grasses and seed heads of her fall garden in a showcase of fall. The yellows really come alive against the blue background of a rainless sky. Fall color has come to Nashville, TN!
Frosts, fothergillas, and fall foliage abound at Frances’ Faire Garden. Coral bark maples, red maples, and Japanese maples (Acer palmatum dissectum ‘Crimson Queen’) fill my fall color post maple quota (to me maples are a must!) The photograph of her disrobing dogwoods and slope garden makes one understand why her garden is a truly Faire Garden!
“Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.”
The colors that Mother Nature is showing us this fall are fantastic! And you know what, she blogs about it too! Mother Nature’s fall color post is up and is a perfect painting of fall colors. The first picture is a very creative shot from her living room. The color changing leaves are framed in the large windows forming a wonderful image of fall. Go visit Tennessee’s Western Highland Rim and see what Mother Nature has brought us!
Did you ever realize that you could go to Florida and see Tennessee fall colors? Well you can today, since Meems brought fall colors from Tennessee to her blog Hoe and Shovel! She recently came here to TN to visit her sister and went to visit the beautiful gardens of Cheekwood Botanical Gardens. She put the pictures together in a slide show for us to see with Japanese maples, scenic country roads, the Natchez Trace Parkway, and all sorts of fall color. Go visit Florida and see what Tennessee has to offer!
Here are a few submissions of mine from my area: Fall Foliage as Nature Intended, A Golden Tree: The Tulip Poplar, and One Tennessee Country Road.
I have always believed that one of our country’s greatest resources is our state and national parks. You can see why when you take a stroll down to Georgia and visit Dot’s (Strolling Through Georgia) trip to the Amicalola Falls State Park. The colors there are in varying hues of gold, red and orange. There are scenic views and of course the waterfall itself that is framed so masterfully between the autumn colors. Dot’s post is a refreshing fall tour through what must be one of Georgia’s greatest treasures!
Skeeter is at it again at In the Garden! This time she brought has the fall colors of her state of Georgia on her mind! Skeeter highlights the fall colors from the Savanah River to her home garden and includes really nice shot of her leaf collection. The trees with Spanish Moss are a special treat that we don’t see this far north except in pictures. The bridges and waterfalls are breathtaking when mixed with the fall foliage!
California
Now let’s head west to California where gold can be found among the poplars along with many other garden treasures! There are seed heads, cornflowers, fuchsia, gooseberries and redwoods to see. Stop over and see what fall displays are Out of Doors!
I’d like to take a moment to say a special thank you for all the bloggers who participated in this fall color experience! I’ve really enjoyed being able to share all of 2008 fall colors with you and I hope to do the same next year. While I’m tentatively wrapping up the project I’ll still add other posts who may have missed the project and have fall color to present. I’ll be taking down the sidebar links but will leave a link to this post in the sidebar for everyone to look back and see what fall colors we had in 2008.
Hiya Dave,
You did us all proud with this project. Thank you so much.
It was lovely to see the spectacle of colours unfold over the weeks.
Doesn’t this final summing up make a beautiful page.
Dave, our fall colors have just peeked here in the Augusta, Ga area and I have my posting ready to post on Sunday…. So check it out…
OMG! I was just going to link to your fall project and here is a wrap up. Did you read my mind on my link? All these posts were great. You need to do this each year Dave.
Thank you Dave for organizing us all! The breadth and depths of fall across the blogging world has been incredible!
Gail
Dave – you did a great job with this and we all appreciate it. I look forward to next years edition.
Thank you for this final burst of colour, Dave! I’d missed a couple of these posts, so was able to pick those up as well. This has been a wonderful project that I hope you’ll do again next year. 🙂
Dave,
I just noticed you have my vacation fall pics under North Carolina when they are taken in Virginia. 🙂
Hey very nice blog.
Hello Dave this must be the most charming post I have ever read on Blotanical. It is so great to see all the different places and there magnificiant autumn pictures. Very nice Dave, keep up good work.Thank you / LOL Tyra
TYRA’S GARDEN
Fantastic project Dave – it’s been great to take part!
It was a fun project Dave, thanks for hosting it! I enjoyed looking at all the beautiful fall color all over the country & world.
It’s been really lovely seeing all the autumnal ‘blaze of glory’ shots. I posted here about the Fall Color Project. California has seasons, too, and some wonderful native plants.