Month: November 2025

I rake and gather a huge amount of leaves in autumn, creating massive leaf piles. Some piles are allowed to naturally decompose, one pile I move to the garden a year later when that pile is well on the way to becoming compost.

Last year and again this year I came across a cluster of white eggs near the bottom of the pile close to the edge at the center. I didn’t pay attention to the eggs last year. This year I saved some. The eggs are about 1.75 inches long and when first found the shells were leathery. Each egg had a slender slit where the baby snake emerged. Searching the web it seems these are eggs laid by a black snake. There were almost a dozen eggs in the clutch. The egg shells quickly dried and become hard like chicken eggs. The narrow slit enlarged and deformed. I’ve recreated the eggs as found in the leaves in this photo. I wished I taken a moment and taken photos of the nest as I found it.

It’s easy to remember to have a camera handy in autumn when the trees show their colors. There are so many times, however, when the colors and light are transitory and I have to just sit or stand and watch the moment as it quickly passes. Here are some moments I caught.

When the sun is low in the west like in this photo the foliage behind me has a special glow where light hits it. The shack in the foreground in this photo.

This photo is looking up in our yard and it’s possible to see where the sun brings out the colors where it falls on the trees.

There’s always a spot of red somewhere when I’m in the woods. That spot stands out in autumn.

This photo shows the view into the garden from the woods, from dark to light when leaves are still on the trees.

Autumn foliage on the perimeter of the garden catches the light. The trees at the edge of the garden are mostly hickory, red and white oak, and maple.

More bright colored leaves in trees on the edge of the garden. The transition from a darker autumn in the woods to bright explosions of color at the fringes of the garden clearing are dramatic. Move just a few steps and there’s a whole new world to experience.