Autumn 2016 Color

My stunning bright red Japanese maple with its many Fall hues

Autumn 2016 Color. This year’s autumn season in Northern Virginia has been very colorful with gorgeous cool weather. We had a bit of a drought period in the late summer. Fall brought us a lot of rain to catch up to our usual rainfall amounts. The leaves changed to beautiful colors prior to their eventual drop by mid-December.

The view down our driveway

The colors from my oakleaf hydrangeas have been spectacular this year. I always love their giant leaves. The deer don’t tend to browse the oakleaf hydrangeas so they are a great option for deer-prone gardens and landscapes.

Oakleaf hydrangeas have gorgeous colorful fall leaves

It took quite a while for all of the leaves to change and then subsequently fall to the ground. During that time we were treated to such beauty.

Fall color in my front yard

As expected, my Japanese maples were spectacular this year. Starting out as some yellows and oranges, they all turned bright to deep reds over the Fall season.

My stunning bright red Japanese maple with its many Fall hues
Hot red Japanese maples fade to a lovely cinnabar color in the Fall

My home office has a lovely view of our front property as well as the neighbors’ horse pastures. My Bloodgood Japanese maple tree turns deep blood red in the Spring, then morphs to a bright green in summer, and to a stunning apricot color in Fall. I love that tree!

The view of Fall colors from my home office
My blood good maple turns apricot in the Fall

Further back on our property, we were treated to a very golden show of beech trees, maples, and oaks. Our dog loves to go on nature walks through our back property.

Our back property near the creek in its Fall color splendor
Our dog Atticus looks for deer and foxes in our back woods
This colorful and stately beech tree houses a family of raccoons in its center

My overall favorite tree on our property is our giant hickory tree. We only have a few hickory trees and this one is the most colorful. It starts out as a sunny bright yellow and morphs to a deep orange before dropping its leaves.

My gorgeous hickory tree in sunny bright yellow
The hickory tree changes to a golden orange before dropping its leaves
My bright yellow hickory is beginning to change to golden orange while the oakleaf hydrangeas boast their own reddish purple color
Gorgeous bright hickory tree stands out every single Fall

And by mid-December, most of the leaves have fallen. Leaves are a wonderful cover for plants for the winter by acting as a “free” mulch. We try to do very little leaf clean up. I wish my neighbors would do the same. Those constantly running leaf blowers are not only providing noise pollution but also kicking up dirt and allergens into the air. I’m all for a “quiet” leaf blower. Fingers crossed that someone will invent one someday.

Mid-December and most of the colorful leaves have fallen

And as a final comment on this odd weather that we’ve been having…The Fairy rose is blooming in my backyard. I guess she doesn’t care about the freezing to warm and back to freezing temperatures. The Fairy is a very old rose bush that I purchased even before we moved to this house.

The Fairy rose isn’t sure that winter is coming so she’s blooming in early December

Yesterday marked the first day of Winter. We will have a lot to see in the garden this upcoming winter. What was colorful in YOUR garden this Fall season? Leave a comment and tell everyone!!

Plow & Hearth

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Plow & Hearth

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Orvis

About The Gardener 65 Articles
An avid gardener and owner of this site.

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