October 20, 2009

This years autumn compared to last

As many of you know from reading my blog, the weather conditions this past spring and summer, here in the Northeast, were quite damp and chilly. Consequently, many agricultural problems arose and farmers and gardeners experienced major disappointments, due to fungus and rot. Currently, it is the peak of leaf season and ideally, fall colors should be vibrant. However, in my area, that is proving to be lackluster, as well.

As already stated, many plant species, have suffered from various fungal conditions causing their leaves to curl and brown. And this autumn, the leaves of certain kinds of maple trees are covered with tar spot fungus. Tar spot developed in the wet spring and began to appear as dark spots in late summer. The fungus causes the leaves to turn brown and drop quickly to the ground. It's important to know that despite the presence of tar spot on leaves, the tree itself should be fine next spring, and hopefully, weather conditions will be much more favorable.

I wanted to show you a photo comparison of the same vistas taken this year and exactly one year ago. You'll see how less colorful things are this season. Fortunately, the sugar maples haven't been affected too badly and are still beautiful. I'm curious, what has your autumn been like?