Winter Coming?

Today, I saw my first White-Throated Sparrow, a sure sign of winter approaching.  The forecast for tomorrow night is for a hard freeze so the bird seems to know what he is doing.  I read that one comes first as a scout for the others so I expect to see a flock soon.

I thought I would post a few fall photos since it looks like the fall season is over already!

 I rotated this shot of orange butterfly plant but it always comes in the original rotation.  Anyway, I like this plant because it attracts all kinds of butterflies including monarchs and it's beautiful spring through fall.  I planted some of the seeds in another part of the yard but they seem to come up better when they plant themselves.

 On October 7, I photographed one of my favorite fall foliages, the dogwood trees.

 I like the way the veins show up yellow while the rest is a pretty red.

 Dogwoods are the first to turn in September and each tree seems to have its own timing for peak color.

 Another shot from October 7 shows how green the rest of the trees are.

Oak trees retain their leaves for a long time, even through early winter.   I photographed this oak to identify....a blackjack oak?   It isn't quite like the field guide and I can't find a big tree to look at the bark and acorns.  Does anyone have any ideas?

I guess we will fire up the woodstove for the first time this year.  And, I need to get into the garden and get the last of my October beans!