All around us grow huge (for Colorado) oak trees. These trees are not the common gambel oak or scrub oak, but a remnant population of oaks from the last ice age, a natural cross between Quercus macrocarpa (Bur Oak) and Quercus gambelii (Gambel’s Oak). They grow as tall as 40′ and some years they turn gorgeous shades of red and gold. This is one of those years.
There are some that turn a deeper mahogany red, and maybe I’ll get photos of them later today. I’m trying to enjoy each moment of this lovely autumn because after tonight I’m afraid the colors will be gone. The green ash tree is golden at the moment. The color is incomparable, but the ash tree has a problem–it is late to lose its leaves and in years with an early snow it is almost always damaged.
Red-twig dogwood, a Colorado native, is also in splendid fall foliage.
