Autumn 2012

[SP1986]

Autumn here... DOH!

Largely green trees still in woodland, though gradually losing their leaves. No Autumn colour this year, but here we don't normally get Autumn colour in our woodlands..

[Bottesford]

Here too. In fact the Ash trees, easily the most common tree in these parts, lost their leaves about 2-3 weeks earlier than normal.

I found this a bit surprising as there have been no early air frosts, no gales and certainly no drought.

Possibly the very low light levels and temperatures throughout most of spring & the first half of summer? Been a hard year for plants in general.

[Aaron]

The colours here are pretty good this year - I'm shocked that some parts of the country have mostly bare trees or no colour at all - how dull.

[Bumpkin]

Here too. In fact the Ash trees, easily the most common tree in these parts, lost their leaves about 2-3 weeks earlier than normal.

I found this a bit surprising as there have been no early air frosts, no gales and certainly no drought.

I have been quite shocked by the speed that the ash turns. About 2 weeks ago most trees were reds/golds/browns and were dropping their leaves and the ash was still green. Within a couple of days the ash was covered in brown leaves and had lost nearly half of its coverage.

[laserguy]

I have been quite shocked by the speed that the ash turns. About 2 weeks ago most trees were reds/golds/browns and were dropping their leaves and the ash was still green. Within a couple of days the ash was covered in brown leaves and had lost nearly half of its coverage.

My God! That dreadful Ash affliction has reached you then? Only kidding - but that's nothing to joke about. Around here autumn seems to have happened all within the last ten days or so. Amazing, and yes the Ash are pretty much naked now,while most other trees are still semi-clothed albeit in magnificent colours. Found myself and the kid totally lost in a beech forest last weekend just as dusk was falling - what a surreal,eerie spectacle that was,and the incredible number of Fly Agarics and other Amanitas at their bases would have kept a witches coven supplied for years. * We did find our way back to civilisation with maybe 15 minutes of usable light left - phew!

[Bottesford]

The colours here are pretty good this year - I'm shocked that some parts of the country have mostly bare trees or no colour at all - how dull.

There is still some good colour around but a lot has fallen very quickly. The horse chestnut tree next to my house is totally bare (but I think its got some problem as leaves have looked poor for ages) but most of the other street trees have about 50% cover. At work (a more exposed location) the trees are much more bare as its been pretty windy lately.

[damianslaw]

Autumn colour peaked around 10 days ago, a little earlier than usual, unfortunately many trees are now bare, not stripped by gales mind, probably the early frosts..

So the scene is very much more mid-late November than early November. It does feel like we have slipped into late November very quickly this year.. in many recent Autumns we have lagged behind the seasonal norm, with a number of trees still clothed in mid November but not this year.

I am enjoying this Autumn it has been very traditional, the autumnal gales arrived around the autumn equinox, the first air frost was a bit earlier than usual in late September, and the first snows of the season arrived in late October, with proper decent snows now arriving on the fells as we enter November - and I think I have seen my first snowflake of the season on low ground this morning.. I'd love to see a cold settled frosty foggy spell mid November to top it all off, but I don't think this month is going to be very settled, it looks dominated by trough action.

November is perhaps the one month of the year when we are least likely to see a lengthy settled spell. High pressure rarely comes onto the scene for lengthy periods - how many Novembers in the past have seen lengthy dry settled periods? - Not many, it is traditionally a month of twists and turns, a month that always keeps you guessing..

Edited November 3, 2012 by damianslaw

[Bottesford]

Agree it has felt like a very traditional autumn and one I was personally more keen to see - October/November should be the gale/rain/fog capital of the year!

Although have to confess with the dire summer the onset of it has been much less welcomed than it would have been. Hoping 2013 has more 'traditional' seasons across the board!

[Jasmine]

It feel like winter to me

[Geordiesnow]

I thought October was a very interesting month and it did had a bit of everything with the exception of perhaps a severe gale event although I think its a bit of a myth that in October we should see massive deep lows in the Atlantic where in reality, October is probably more of a settled month that people actually might think.

Looks like November is going to start on the more recent years type of note, a bit of a bland set up with a lot of cloud and outbreaks of rain, could be a little gusty at times but no real severe gale event is on the horizon at the moment, would not mind seeing a deep low heading our way and that would round up on what has been a great Autumn season!

In all honesty, despite the colder October, leaf colour change/fall has been around normal here, maybe slightly earlier than recent years but despite the cold weather, there is still quite a fair number of leaves on the trees or as some may say, the trees are around half naked.

[philglossop]

Oddly I was commenting with a work colleague today about leaves on trees, there are still some lovely yellows and reds around down here, but if you look at the tops of trees they are slowly becoming bare.

The lack of autumn gales has played it's part this year in so many trees still being in leaf even this late in the year. But unlike last year the horse chestnuts have virtually all gone, unlike last year when they stayed in place into December in certain locations in Plymouth.

[Snowy Easterlies]

leaves finally turning yellow now, no doubt nothing will change next week as it will be mild, who knows might seem some blossom lol

[Ninman]

leaves finally turning yellow now, no doubt nothing will change next week as it will be mild, who knows might seem some blossom lol

On a similar note, my hypericum bush is still flowering! It's been flowering since the end of may. Usually it flowers in June and then another short flowering burst in August with all flowers dying off by the start of October. It's the first time I've seen it flowering in the latter part of autumn - looks quite odd when the tree in the garden is bare.....

[SP1986]

Our Hypericum can flower well into winter but it depends what type it is I suppose. Ours is H. 'hidcote'. Still flowering now, but then so is everything, which is fairly normal.

[damianslaw]

Up until recent days, the autumn so far has been very appealing with a mix of decent lengthy dry sunny breaks with frost and fog, and chilly showery wet days though nothing particularly windy. Unfortunately we are now in the depths of autumnal gloom, really don't like the current conditions, drab, dismal, dull, dark, drizzly, and mild very non-descript, the worst side of November.

Today is particularly dreary, with low cloud, drizzly rain off and on, no wind to stir the cloud and abnormally mild. Most Novembers do bring such days, and I'm always longing for a change in synoptics when such conditions set in. Hopefully by the end of the week we will see a return of more average temperatures with fog and hopefully brighter conditions. However, the outlook for the next 7 days at least does look rather dismal and gloomy - but I'd much rather have such weather in November than December - when it happens in December it is particularly depressing and very unseasonal...

Really do hope we end up with a much colder brighter frostier end to the month after what will have been probably 2 weeks of gloom.

November - no sun, no flowers, no fun, November!

[AWD]

Been notably calm so far this Autumn. Have had little "wind" or stormy LP activity this season.

[Bottesford]

Up until recent days, the autumn so far has been very appealing with a mix of decent lengthy dry sunny breaks with frost and fog, and chilly showery wet days though nothing particularly windy. Unfortunately we are now in the depths of autumnal gloom, really don't like the current conditions, drab, dismal, dull, dark, drizzly, and mild very non-descript, the worst side of November.

Today is particularly dreary, with low cloud, drizzly rain off and on, no wind to stir the cloud and abnormally mild. Most Novembers do bring such days, and I'm always longing for a change in synoptics when such conditions set in. Hopefully by the end of the week we will see a return of more average temperatures with fog and hopefully brighter conditions. However, the outlook for the next 7 days at least does look rather dismal and gloomy - but I'd much rather have such weather in November than December - when it happens in December it is particularly depressing and very unseasonal...

Really do hope we end up with a much colder brighter frostier end to the month after what will have been probably 2 weeks of gloom.

November - no sun, no flowers, no fun, November!

Over this side of the Pennines its almost in reverse as we can often get some sunshine out of these conditions - we did get some sun today albeit not alot but the last two weeks overall have had a good deal of sunshine.

The way you describe it is alot like easterlies round here with their unending perpetual greyness - the only difference is that they are horribly chilly & raw. Gimme mild & cloudy over cold & cloudy anyday!

[summer blizzard]

The colours here are pretty good this year - I'm shocked that some parts of the country have mostly bare trees or no colour at all - how dull.

I agree, its been lovely and extended this year.

I'd say for color that this may be the best Autumn since perhaps 2007.

[Jasmine]

My trees are leave less I think the wind has blown all of them off

[damianslaw]

Over this side of the Pennines its almost in reverse as we can often get some sunshine out of these conditions - we did get some sun today albeit not alot but the last two weeks overall have had a good deal of sunshine.

The way you describe it is alot like easterlies round here with their unending perpetual greyness - the only difference is that they are horribly chilly & raw. Gimme mild & cloudy over cold & cloudy anyday!

Southwesterly airstreams whatever the time of year always bring cloudy overcast conditions to the Lake District with low cloud under the 'warm sector'.. come here in the summer and blame the southwesterly for the low cloud and no views of the fells. They are full of warm moist air which gets uplifted over the western fells to bring copious amounts of light rain or drizzle even when there are no fronts around. If you look at the radar image today it won't have picked up the persistent light fine drizzle which clung to the lake district whilst only 20 - 30 miles south east in Lancaster it stayed dry. Take a drive up the M6 and onto the A590/A591 and you'll see the southwesterly in all its action, gradually the skies turn more and more overcast as you hit Cumbria and the first spits and spots of rain usually appear as you hit Kendal often becoming fine persistent light rain on nearing Windermere..

Whilst the southwesterly brings mild weather it also often brings the worse conditions you can experience in the Lake District if your after a decent photograph or a view from a fell. Miserable fell walking conditions...

[Bottesford]

It makes me even more appreciative of my trip to the Lakes this year which happened to fall on 3 extremely sunny & warm days - in fact it was the mid 20s up there! Considering how dire this year has been weatherwise it was even more remarkable as I honestly expected to get soaked the whole time.

I'm guessing easterlies are much less problematic up there having dried out a bit before reaching you. Now a Dec 2010 easterly is great - a proper cold source - but anything less than that and its just awful and gets even worse towards the coast.

[Dave Kightley]

A link on youtube to a video taken from just outside Wincanton on the 4th November

[Mark Neal.]

Typical late autumn fair at moment. One day it 14c, the next evening down to near freezing thanks to clear skies and foggy conditions.

I can remember many foggy nights and slow to lift before the 2009/2010 cold spell and again in late 2010. Lets hope this happens again

[AWD]

Matt Hugo's view on what the remainder of Autumn holds for us;

http://t.co/rRWAjpU9

[philglossop]

Finally the Acer in my Mum and Dad's sheltered garden coped the wind and having been fully covered in red leaves yesterday, today is down to single leaves towards the bottom of the tree.

The tree at the end of the road has gone from 70% covered yesterday to 95% empty over night.

Now the Acer has gone, it's nearly winter.