It's here! My favourite time of the year. I could smell Autumn in the air this morning and it was fantastic. Next time you have the pleasure of walking up to the front entrance of the clubhouse, take a moment to breathe it in. It's the sweet smell of cotton candy and it's created by the Katsura tree (
Cercidiphyllum japonicum) losing its leaves. This statuesque tree turns a soft peachy yellow colour in the Fall that almost seems illuminated by the daytime sky. There are two Katsura trees framing the front gazebo bed, both of which *survived the fire that took over that garden bed just a decade prior. Additionally, in this garden is a mass planting of lavender that has bushed out into a second growth for the season. Lavender is one of my favourite fragrances. If you brush past it, the air fills up with a fresh herbal odor. I like to pretend I'm in Provence.
Soon, the clouds will get heavy with water and the leaves will drop. The sky will fill with the smell of smoke and wet leaves. The earth will become damp and rich. And on those dry days and cool nights the leaves will rattle across the pavement and the long, bold sunsets will stain the sky. And the pumpkins will get plopped on front porches and silent messages will be left in the air as people leave smoke signals with their breath. Sorry, I got a little poetic there. Either way, I'm obviously very passionate about the start of this new season.
As, I've been writing this long, flowery pose the sun just broke through the clouds and started warming up the place. Perhaps, we have an Indian Summer on our horizon. It seems Fall will just have to wait a few more weeks before it's big reveal.
*Sidenote: Please do not throw cigarette butts into the garden beds. The bark mulch can catch on fire.
