Japanese maple leaves on the tree and on the sidewalk below

This picture was taken after it had rained, and there were marks of wetness around the leaves on the sidewalk.

Night photos of autumn leaves

We've come to that time of year when it's dark when I leave work, so I tried taking some photos in the dark on the way home from work. Norway maple:

Beech:

Tree at Oakwood with compound leaves

I saw this tree at Oakwood Cemetery. Alternate compound leaves. Alternate compound leaves could be hickory, except these seem to have three leaflets, and hickories seem to have more than three. I didn't spend much time studying this tree. Did it really have three leaflets? Hoptree has three leaflets, but hoptree is short. I'll have to go back and observe more carefully.

Ash and locust

Last Monday, my neighborhood was yellow with ash and locust.  Today, it's still yellow with locust.  Some of the ash trees are mostly bare, while some still have many leaves.  It seems like the older, larger ones are more likely to still have leaves.

Summer leaves

What I love about summer is gazing up into layer upon layer of lush green leaves.

July 16, 2012:

July 16, 2012:

August 16, 2012:

August 23, 2012:

Amur maple

I saw a tree with opposite, lobed leaves.  Probably some kind of maple? The name that popped into my head was amur maple.  When I got home, I checked my books.  Yes, amur maple was the maple that most resembled the tree I saw.  I hadn't even known that amur maple was a tree I know.  That has happened before.  That's the way I like to learn trees -- I look at pretty pictures in the book, and they sneak into my brain without my knowing it.

Ash at Lions Park

At Lions Park, there's a grassy area with several trees growing. While many of the trees along the path appear to be wild, these trees in the middle of the grass must be cultivated. I saw a red maple, two sugar maples, and two ash trees. I took these photos of one of the ashes. How does one describe the shape of an ash bud? I think it's like a Russian dome or a Hershey's kiss. The twigs of this ash tree had noticeable end buds. I tried to get a picture, but the pictures did not come out very well.

Here you can see that the leaves are opposite.

Some leaves had seven leaflets.

Others only had five.

What kind of ash is it? When I look through the ashes in Sibley Guide to Trees, it seems to be it must be white ash or green ash.  What are the differences?  According to the book, they are:

• White ash leaves are about 12 inches long, while green ash leaves tend to be about 9 inches long.  I'd say these are probably closer to 9 inches.
• White ash leaves have whitish underside, while green ash leaves have greener underside.  The second photo of a bud shows some leaf undersides, and I'd say it's more green than white.
• White ash twigs are smooth, while new green ash twigs can be woolly.  I'll have to check that next time I go.
• White ash may have U-shaped leaf scars, while green ash leaf scars are not U-shaped.  Another thing to check next time I go.
• Bark of young trees is smooth and grayish on white ash, and pinkish with dark joints on green ash. You can see trunks in the last two photos.  Are they gray? Is there any pinkish to them?
• White ash leaflet stalks are long or short.  Green ash leaflet stalks are often winged to base.  I'd say these look more winged to base.
• Fall color is a difference, though that doesn't help now. Green ash will be yellow, while white ash may be yellow, maroon, or purple.

I'd say this is probably a green ash.  I think the trees in my neighborhood are green ash too.  I know they turn yellow in the fall.  

But the book warns with regard to white ash and green ash, "The distinguishing features are small and variable....Many trees are intermediate."

Red tipped needles

There are some small evergreen trees at the top of the hill between the library and Amos Eaton.  I think they might be some sort of firs because the needles are flat.  They never seem to have any cones.  Now the tips are reddish brown.  Why could that be? An internet search suggests that they could be too dry.  It also mentioned afflictions called needle necrosis and needle cast, but neither of those seems to match up with what I'm seeing here.

Hawthorn and dogwood flowers

The hawthorn flowers are pretty much over now.

It seems that many flowerings last about a week or two.

The dogwoods have lasted longer.  But those are not actually flowers, they are bracts.

Cedar waxwings

When I left work yesterday, I heard a different sound than usual as soon as I walked out of the building.  I looked all around, and figured out that the cedar waxwings have come to the juneberry trees.

Horsechestnuts and Japanese tree lilacs

The horsechestnuts have lost their flowers, but the Japanese tree lilacs are starting to flower.

Hawthorn and hydrangea blooms

The hawthorns are blooming now.

Some of the hydrangeas are blooming too, but not all.

Cottonwoods

The cottonwoods have started putting out their cotton.  It drifts through the air.  Last year, I made note of this June 6, but I think it may have started earlier than June 6, I just didn't realize what it was until June 6.

Leaves are mostly out

The leaves have come out on the sycamore maple.  Now just about all the trees except ailanthus have leaves.

Also, the Miss Kim lilacs are starting to bloom.

Leafy horsechestnuts

The horsechestnuts by the Quad are beautiful with their spring leaves.

Spring has enlivened the view from my office

The area in front of my office is rich with color now, with the red of copper beech and crimson king maple, and the green of callery pear, spruce, and crabapple.

Copper beech

Red leaves have emerged on the copper beech.

Crabapples in April

The first part of April was cold, and there was little change in the crabapples.  This is what they looked like on March 30:

They look much the same in these two photos from April 6:

When I left work on Friday, April 13, I did not notice any change, but when I returned on Monday, April 16, they had started blossoming, although some were not yet open.

Two days later, on April 18, they were even farther along:

April 19, with red maples in the background:

April 20:

After a cold, rainy weekend, I think the crabapple blossoms are a little past their peak, although there are still lots of blossoms.  Monday, April 23:

April 24 was very windy.  The trees did still  have a lot of blossoms.

But overall, there are fewer blossoms.

Looking for the blossoms that used to be on the trees? Now they are on the ground:

On May 1, the flowers that remain on the crabapple trees are looking brown.

From a distance, the crabapple trees show mostly leaves rather than blossoms.

Redbud

March 29:

April 6:

April 10:

April 17:

April 23: