AUTUMN TREES

Dawn lights the sky late these November mornings. Blue sky and still, cold air means trees are dressed in brilliant autumn finery. At the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust's site at Moorlands, north of York, yesterday, the path was already strewn with golden leaves of overhead beech trees patterned by shafts of low sunlight.


Sun glistened through the foliage overhead creating a kaleidoscope of colour and my boots crunched on dry fallen leaf piles. The woods were almost silent of birdsong, but so peaceful.








The path opened onto a clearing of stunning red Acers, fiery crimson, lit up like stained glass



















A stand of ancient oaks, knarled trunks supported layers of branches glowing gold above my head.Jewelled leaves of purple beech lay like confetti at the edge of a dipping pond - delightfully reflecting blue sky and winter branchesI confess I knew little about the amazing number and variety of habitats in our region and the work the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust does to conserve them, until I met a warden at Moorlands. Visit their website: www.ywt.org to learn more.

Autumn is not my favourite time of year, but this visit has reminded me of the valuable contribution foliage makes to extend the season of interest.