Christmas tree

This afternoon, we cut our tree at our favorite tree farm.

Backyard wildlife

For some reason, we see more animals in the yard during the winter. I'm not sure if it comes from seasonal changes in their behavior or in ours. We've seen deer every morning this week and an opossum last night.

alfresco

Kalamazoo just had its first deep snow of the season.

Not so evergreen

Most conifers in Michigan are green year round. The Tamarack (Larix laricina) is the only one that loses its needles for winter. The brown needles remind me of an artificial tree I almost bought by mistake in Uruguay.

Kalamazoo is at the southern edge of this tree's range which extends to northern Canada. Historically, tamarack has been used for many purposes from ships to paper to decoys.

Snow coverage

While we had a few flurries earlier, this weekend was the first time there was enough snow to cover the ground. Last night the roads were slippery. The pond iced over as well. It feels like winter is here.

First snow

Kalamazoo had its first snow of the season this weekend. Not enough to cover the grass, but I did need to scrape my windshield this evening. Winter is on its way.

Peak color

Maples are the star of Michigan's fall color season and they are brilliant now. Unseasonably warm weather made it really pleasant for a walk through the woods.