The first signs of fall are spotting the tinging of the leaves. Sometimes, on spots the first change of color as early as the last week of August. And we are a little sad, for summer is ending.
Not only do we have 4 seasons in the Northeast, but we have at least a dozen or more microseasons. These are the transitions between one official season and another. I would divide Autumn into three microseasons:
- The Tinging (the first subtle shift in hue)
- The Glory (brilliant foliage)
- The Barren Times (the bare trees before the first snow)
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| During the Tinging, a subtle shift of hue can be detected. Here the sycamores near Harvard University in Cambridge have shifted a bit to the yellow side of their summer green. |
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| The tinging may be little patches of color in and around the green, near MIT in Cambridge. |
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| These sugar maples are early changers. Nothing subtle about their colors! |
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| Muted color along the Charles River in Cambridge. Cloudless blue skies! |
The first signs of fall are spotting the tinging of the leaves. Sometimes, on spots the first change of color as early as the last week of August. And we are a little sad, for summer is ending.
Comment from Facebook friend Mike:
ReplyDeleteI would add 2a. That's when the brilliance has passed and been replaced by the somber reds and browns of the oaks but spectacular in their own way. I compare the the brilliant foliage (mostly maples) to trumpets and violins and the oaks to the french horns and cellos.