Summers Finally Here & Now There's Signs of Fall

Yesterday's official high was 92 and today I think it reached at least 90. Finally a weekend that was on the verge of actually being HOT! As you can see, Tom-Cat found a patch of shade and slept away the hottest part of the day. And although Fall is still offically over a month away, Mother Nature is slowly showing signs of its impending return.

The leaves on the three Sweet Gum trees are just beginning to turn from bright green to red.

The Bracken Fern are also making a switch from green to golden yellow.

I found a few actual filberts on the wild filbert bushes. The protective wrappers are drying and turning brown.

Another transition into Fall around here is the sound of crickets at night. They always begin their chorus in the month of August as our nighttime temperatures begin to cool.

And I was pleased to see this juvenile Evening Grosbeak at the feeder this morning. He definitely isn't a normal sign of approaching Fall. In a regular year, the Evening Grosbeaks would have been gone from our area for weeks by this time. But we are still hearing their distinctive "Chir" in the maple trees and I spotted one adult male and this juvenile male this weekend at the feeders. I think that their schedule is as delayed as our plants this year and we are so glad to still have them around.