Wednesday’s Photo
The Oak Tree
Two weeks ago, I published two photos that added with the help of the rosehips and the pine tree a little bit of colour to the otherwise grey winter landscape. Many people also noticed the oak tree with the orange leaves. Who can solve the puzzle about the leaves still on this tree and also on all the maple trees here in our little community at the end of January? I have never observed this curious phenomenon before. Today’s photo was taken in bright sunshine about a week ago. Enjoy.
The Peter and Gertrud Klopp Family 
The leaves and the snow, a beautiful contrast!
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I knew that the shedding of leaves, or other plant (or even animal) parts is called abscission. When I explored reasons that it might not take place, I found that an entire complex of factors could be involved, from temperature and light levels to hormones and other processes taking place within the plant. That helps to explain why trees and shrubs next to each other might respond different, with one dropping all its leaves and another holding on to them.
Whatever the specific explanation for your still-leaved tree, it’s beautiful!
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I like shoreacres’ answer. Climate change likely has screwed up the natural course of things. I’ve seen maple trees in New England also be very delayed in shedding their leaves.
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One thing I have noticed in the trees around my own area, is that the nut trees (filbert and walnut) are always the last to get new green leaves in the spring and the last to lose their leaves in the fall, so maybe it’s a genetic thing with nut trees. Oak trees, having acorns, may have a similar genetic programming. Who knows?
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I don’t know the explanation but it’s a real pleasure to see it.
I’ve read that street lights with sodium or LED bulbs can confuse the trees’ cycles, as Linda was discussing, but obviously that’s not a factor for this tree. There’s a beech tree at my parents’ home that sometimes keeps its leaves all winter and we’ve never known why.
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Ich bin selber nicht bewandert da, habe aber letzthin auch eine Mistel auf einem Baum fotografiert, deren Farbe so abstach.
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