Ginkgo Trees in Fall

I know I'm a bit late for this, it being winter now and all that, but can't let these beautiful ginkgo trees near the Pomona Fair Grounds in L.A. go by. This is nature's palette at it's best with yellow and green on blue.

Ginkgo trees have always been my autumn favorites. There a many of them along Prince's Street in Auckland right by the University of Auckland. I always used to think the carpet of bright yellow leaves that fell around the trees was the closest thing to yellow snow that you could get...and I'm not talking about anything to do with dogs here!

These Asian giants now come in dwarf varieties, which really pleases me since I love them so much, and I have two of the little beauties in my garden in pots.

California Poppy

This delicate little flower is the state flower for California. A mere 4 yellow petals are held aloft a slender stem but what a show they put on, especially if there has been a decent amount of rain in the winter.

The flowers range in color from yellow through orange. Since I made some significant alterations to the original photo of this California poppy, here is the original so you can get a truer idea of the flower.