Showing Off

Almost all the trees around our house have lost all or most of their leaves. Except these two. The red job is the Japanese maple - you saw its leaves the other day close up. The orange one is - I think - a "Dawn Redwood." I no longer remember why or how, but at some point we bought it at a nursery and planted it down in a dampish area below house - between the house and the road. It's basically unnoticeable most of the year because in the summer it's green like everything else, and in the dead of winter it's bare branches. But at THIS time of the year it's amazing. It's one of the few deciduous conifers - and it turns this glorious orange before dropping all it's leaves/needles/whatever they're called. It has already dropped a lot of the bottom bits, but the top is still pretty dense with orange. Some interesting historical info here.

I wandered down to have a closer look at it - the extras are:

1. Looking up from underneath
2. Three of the "leaves" lying on my soapstone kitchen counter

Anyhoo - They're both showing off. And giving me great pleasure.