Yesterday the weather was pretty nice, but today is absolutely gorgeous. Not bright blue weather, just a hazy pale blue sky, but the temps are warm (over 60º) and it is just a mild, nice November day. Perfect for raking leaves or other outdoor pursuits.
Just yesterday I went and checked on the bittersweet growing near my dad's house. (In retrospect, it would have been even nicer to do it today, but today has been filled with other tasks.)
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| Showing some of the background -- road, field, brook. |
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| At first I thought maybe the bittersweet had just taken over the tree. Nope. It appears to be a bittersweet tree. |
Oh I adore bittersweet. We don't have it growing here and I am envious. I think your photos are wonderful.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lady Linda! I'm glad you enjoyed seeing my local source of bittersweet. I only discovered this a few years ago but am happy that I did!
DeleteOh my - amazing! It is a vine and probably grew up into the tree. I planted 12 plants this year. I hope they grow quickly! That is beautiful. I hope you got some to enjoy and decorate with!
ReplyDeleteI hope to cut some today, Bernideen. Hope your plants do well. I know that you will put them to very, very good use.
DeleteIf I can, while I am there today, I will get some closer-up pictures of that tree.
Bittersweet is such a pretty sight in autumn. Lovely photos, and a lovely day for being out and about.
ReplyDeleteIt is, isn't it, Lorrie? It's interesting to me how that after most of the pretty trees have lost their leaves, that berries like bittersweet and others come into their own and really show up.
DeleteBeautiful ♥
ReplyDeleteThanks, Summer! I don't imagine you have bittersweet growing in your locale.
DeleteWell I must return to my secret spot. I didn't know that there could be such a thing as a bittersweet tree. There are a number around here that certainly look as if... I have noticed the winterberries are also out. I must get over to The Ponderosa because that is where I find lots of them. John used to do this chore for me or we'd do it together. Bittersweet year. Memories.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, Vee, a bittersweet year for you. I am so thankful for all of the wonderful memories you have of John, and how you are keeping those memories alive.
DeleteI'm not sure I know what winterberries look like. I must look that up and see what I can find. I'm always wary of unknown berries because I know poison ivy can have them.
Bittersweet is one of my favorite childhood memories of fall. Each year on one Sunday afternoon mother would ask to go on a Sunday ride up to a mountain area where bittersweet grew. The locals in that area would cut some branches and hang them on lines on their porches for people to buy. I was always happy to help her choose just the right branches for us to bring home and use for fall color in our house. Thanks for sharing this and reminding me of this annual event.
ReplyDeleteOh, Joyce, thanks for sharing! This is so very interesting. I would never have thought of local people harvesting branches for sale -- hanging them on lines on their porches. What a pretty sight that must have been!
DeleteDo we even HAVE bittersweet down here in Texas?? I don't think so! But I wish we did and I love YOURS!
ReplyDeleteI wish you had bittersweet in Texas too, Linda, but I suspect the climate isn't right. I know you would make good use of bittersweet in your decorating if you had some!
DeleteI always wanted a bittersweet wreath. They are so pretty. I have not seen any in my area so not sure that it grows here Mrs T.
ReplyDeleteThey are pretty, Arlene. I was just reading that one should really cut the branches while the berries are still green, in order to form them into a wreath more easily. The article also mentioned that one should decorate with bittersweet either outdoors or in a very cool indoor space, because the berries can drop off and stain furnishings.
DeleteAs for where it grows, this is what I found at gardening.about.com:
"According to the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, American bittersweet plants occur naturally in the central and eastern U.S., except in Florida.
Meanwhile, according to the U.S. National Park Service, oriental bittersweet vines are native to eastern Asia; they were introduced into the U.S. in the 1860s. [This is the type that has become invasive.] Reporting on the spread of the oriental variety in the U.S., the Park Service says that it occurs "from New York to North Carolina, and westward to Illinois."