The sweetgum tree is sporting buds. Spring is somewhere round the corner.....
The dormancy lasted till early spring. The vernal climate induced the buds to sprout into tender leaves. Clusters of catkins appeared and dropped off. The tiny, parrot-green leaves covered the branches, which looked glossy when the spring sun caressed it. Mourning doves, starlings, crows, sparrows and hooded orioles are prancing on the rejuvenated tree. Take a look at the spring attire of the trees.
The soft touch on the tender foliage of sweetgum............
Sweetgum fruits had been a staple food for a plethora of birds and squirrels during autumn. The fruits drew many birds, namely sparrows, starlings, goldfinches and cedar waxwings, much to our delight. Squirrels perched on the branch, gnawing at the fruit-balls and dripping the peels had been so fun to watch. Yesterday, as I looked at the tender yellowish-green canopy of the tree, the tiny fruits peeped through the foliage. Perhaps, it's the time to listen to the cacophony yet again...
Sweetgum fruits hanging from the tree. These fruits are borne on the tree in so abundance, they never seem to deplete even if the gluttonous squirrels munched on it day and night, sparrows and finches pecked incessantly or the storms strewn them on the ground. Whatever, this tree is a keystone of South California, everyone must admit. It provided food to the small critters all through the autumn and winter months.
The changing hues of sweetgum create a charm of its own against the deep green of elm and cedar...
Vibrant red foliage of glossy, star-shaped leaves .......while, most of the trees in this region remain as green ever throughout the fall season, these trees respond to autumn and transform their foliage into brilliant yellow, red, orange and purple shades....
A bowlful of dried sweetgum balls collected from my front yard. A sea of these fruits had littered the ground.........
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