Every September and early October I listen to my friend in Salem, MA rave about the fall color where she lives.  I’ve seen it and I know what she means.  It’s iconic autumn color and it’s spectacular.  I’ve often heard out-of-staters pity us because we don’t enjoy a change of seasons that would bring us such glorious landscapes.

What my friends and most others who do not live here don’t understand, is that we do, in fact enjoy vivid fall color; it’s just later in the year.  From the Bradford pear trees across the street from me to the Ginkgo down the block, to the spectacular red Chinese Pistache a few blocks away, my neighborhood is awash in fall color.  It just happens that it’s December.

Rather than pity us for our lack of seasonal change, non-Northern Californians should marvel at the fact that we can experience all four seasons at the same time!  Within a couple of miles of my house I can see trees arrayed in autumn finery, the rich, dark soil of plowed winter fields, beautiful spring grains and grasses sprouting in the valley and up the hill sides, and colorful flowers growing in home gardens.

Aren’t we lucky?  Where else could we experience all four seasons in one place and at one time.

Dark soil of plowed winter fields. (photos by Marime Burton)

Colorful lantana flowers.