Tag: Fall colors in Portland

The Beauty of Ginkgos

Dear Liza,

Fall just keeps falling! Our local ginkgo trees have been blindingly yellow for about a week, and are now dropping their leaves.

Just up the street, a young ginkgo in the parkway has carpeted the sidewalk, grass and half the road with brilliant yellow.

The strong winds make for some odd landing sites for the leaves.

This nearby cactus has a bit of haunting decoration….Ouch!

And in Laurelhurst Park, we get a double treat as the tall old ginkgo is reflected in Firwood Lake. Enjoy the color while you can!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Fall Colors Cranking Up!

Dear Liza,

As our weather gets colder, the trees are getting more serious about colorization.

On every walk around Laurelhurst Park , we see our favorite places changing.

This view from above Firwood Lake takes in the dark tree trunks, bright foliage by the lake, and a very busy squirrel.

And the little lake itself makes everything twice as beautiful.

I love seeing the darkest parts of the park become the lightest, as leaves change and fall and the framework of the trees open up.

And, on our way home, this ginkgo tree shows off an edge of color before going completely yellow.

Enjoy your seasons!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Real Rain

Dear Liza,

After the Belmont Street Fair ended with rain, we had a weird Summer redux week of sunshine and warm weather. My garden’s lettuces kicked back into gear, more tomatoes got ripe, and the last dahlias bloomed.

Then Wednesday, it all broke loose again. A sprinkle caught Grandpa Nelson as he walked to Zach’s for lunch, and by the time Auntie Bridgett and I wanted to get out of the house, it was a deluge!

Still, we bundled up, layered on the hats and water-repellant coats, and headed out.

I do love the world when it is wet and drippy… fresh, shiny, and always moving. The wind and rain takes dust from the air and trees and just washes it away.

In our neighborhood, this means lovely rippled rivers as gutters flow into bioswales. The bioswales hold the rainwater and let it filter slowly into the aquifer, keeping our Willamette River clean.

I was appreciating all this engineering as my coat was soaking through and my completely-inadequate sneakers filled with water. “I’m turning around at the next corner,” Bridgett said. I agreed.

Because an adventure is only an adventure if you live to tell about it.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Autumn in the Neighborhood

Dear Liza,

Our weather is changing here in Portland. Reds and oranges are creeping into the wide swaths of green in our Laurelhurst Park and all through the neighborhood.

The dogwood trees are fruiting, all those pink blossoms fattening up into bumpy red berries. The birds and squirrels are noticing, for sure.

This colorful plant needed some looking up, because it is all over one block. It’s even coming up in the sidewalk! It is called Amaranth, (also called Love Lies Bleeding) and is an ancient grain. It is very healthy to eat… I wonder if these folks know that.

Another crop that is escaping and going rogue is this hops in a parking lot. The soft-stemmed hops plant has found an obliging maple tree to climb on and a blackberry bush to hang out with. Aren’t they pretty together?

I hope your Fall neighborhood is pretty!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Fall on the Way

Dear Liza,

Portland is changing with the seasons, as it should. Fruit is becoming ripe all over the neighborhood, and folks are more than willing to share!

A house a few blocks away has a gigantic Asian Pear tree with more fruit than they can handle, so they offer a ladder, a nifty bucket-on-a-stick grabber, and even paper sacks to take your fresh fruit home. Thanks, neighbors!

As we walk around, we keep having to look UP… to see flowers! Sunflowers have hit their growth spurts and some are ten feet high!

And then there are Amaranths, these red feathery beasts, taller than me and absolutely magical looking.

Even Laurelhurst Park is getting into the change. While some late linden trees are still blooming, giving the scent we call “Portland Summer”, some others are already turning yellow.

Soon this part of the park, which we call the Middle Heights, will be bathed in cool autumn sunshine as all the leaves turn the ground bright yellow.

And of course, the roses are still with us.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Littering Leaves

Dear Liza,

It is leaf season in Portland! After hanging around on trees all summer, tons of photosynthesizing bits are giving up the ghost and decorating our neighborhood.

We are now at that magical, all-to-short period between green leaves on the trees and slimy, slippery leaf mulch in the gutters. It makes me so happy that I dash about like a squirrel, taking pictures of the lovely, pre-mulch mosaic.

The city of Portland has major infrastructure dedicated to collecting these masses, and most (but not all) of our neighbors are very good about clearing them away. We appreciate this, even as we watch the color drive away, because wet leaves can really trip you up. No one wants to start winter off with a busted hip.

The Fall brings so many changes. Green leaves become brown and yellow. Brown branches, now blooming with moss, become green. Colorful flowers die back and are replaced by Christmas lights.

Transitions are sweet, kissing one season goodbye and welcoming another. Happy Fall.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Seasonal Poetry

Dear Liza,

I went out for a walk the other day to enjoy the colors and clear my head. Sitting with a cat on your lap, watching the fire burn, though very pleasant, makes me a bit fuzzy headed.

I bundled up, headed out, and got inspired. Here is my take on the seasons.

For The Leaves

The Spring brought us colors of blossom and bloom,

The beginnings of life, bursting forth, making room.

The summer brought jewel-colored fruits of the vine

Apples for a pie and grapes for some wine.

In Autumn the world became darker and cold,

The youth of the spring has grown up and grown old.

No longer bursting, it no longer glows

It flashes an instant before the storm blows

But just for this moment, the wind holds its peace

And leaves us to contemplate

This lovely release.

I hope you enjoy the Fall!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Leaving…..

Dear Liza,

Having lived most of my life in Southern and Central California, home of evergreen landscaping, I am dumfounded every Fall by our colors. The intense yellows of the ginkoes, gold of the birches, the red of quince and the flaming maples, just knock me out.

Laurelhurst Park, of course, is acres of loveliness. But our neighborhood trees, some of which are a hundred years old, also make me understand why people who move from elsewhere to Southern California say “they miss the seasons”.


I guess I get sort of goofy in the Fall. Summer’s flowers and sunshine are so bright, it is almost blinding. In Fall, it is grayer, darker, and… wetter. The bright leaves are our last hurrah of color until spring, and I don’t want to miss it.


So, while I go walking and leaf-peeping whenever I feel sad or restless, I hope these pictures let you see why I love our Fall so much.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Glowing Fall

Dear Liza,

We had a slow walk around Laurelhurst Park on Thanksgiving, to settle our dinner and enjoy being out in the world. Laurelhurst was planted in 1913, so most of the trees are huge. It feels like a tame forest and is my favorite place in the city.

Auntie Bridgett takes some pictures

This Fall, Firwood Lake is covered with duckweed and looks more like lawn than a pond. It is oddly beautiful.

Firwood Lake and oak trees

The old-fashioned lamps look beautiful against the trees in any season.

Ginkgoes and lamppost

The bright yellow of birches and ginkgoes brightens up the darkest corners of the woods.

Ginkgo glowing down the way

On a day when we were not with friends or family and were feeling a little sad, it was good to get out and be part of the beauty.

I hope you have a good week.

Love,

Grandma Judy