Autumn in January

Too late to make a bouquet of the leaves of the Roger's Red Grape - they have arranged themselves in glorious disarray on the litter beneath their trellis.The leaves attune my eye for rich redness, and as I search for more, I find it in the Liquid Amber tree nearby. A morning bouquet of reds and yellows takes form. 


The Liquidambar styraciflua, or American sweetgum, began as a small volunteer under its mother tree at my in-laws' Los Gatos home. It may grow to be 65 or 100 feet or more tall - why did I plant it in a rose bed? This is an example of a gardening habit I hope to outgrow. I plant something where I have space, without much hope it will survive. When it does, thriving unexpectedly, it outgrows the space and doesn't relate in size or structure to what is around it, having been placed there randomly. Then it is time to decide whether to move it or get rid of it. For now, this tree, about 18 feet high, will stay where it is, inspiring bouquets.