Yellowing Leaves

The yellow tulip poplar leaves in my photo today make it looks as though fall is further along at the cabin than it really is. Tulip poplar is one of those trees that does turn early and usually produces a nice bright shade of yellow as well. The oak trees tend to produce a deeper yellow, not this lovely bright shade. Sassafras is often orange. Red is a more uncommon shade in my woods.

I am finally starting to see some evidence that the deer rut has begun, though as yet the deer don’t seem fully consumed by it. Last evening I saw a small buck, a few doe and only the back ends of two other deer out after dark in various places on the mountain, tiptoeing from one side of the road to the other. So at least that sign of fall has appeared.

As for the rest of fall—it’s still on hiatus. Today the temperature will be in the upper 80’s, a full 20 degrees above the normal long-term average for this time of year. Right now I am only a few days from what is the typical first frost of the year, but this year I’m not even close to seeing that. My windows remain open. My “indoor” plants continue their outside summer vacation. My Christmas cactus, which usually have set buds by now, haven’t. And so it goes. Or so it doesn't, as the case may be.