Going into November there are some people that don’t like this time of year for many reasons. 1) Daylight hours decrease. 2) Summer is over and we won’t have warm weather for months. 3) Our boats are out of the water, and we can’t fish in our favorite spots. 4) Snow will be covering the ground soon and we’ll have cold weather for five months. 6) Most of the trees are bare and won’t come back to life until spring. A few of these reasons can trigger sadness or even depression but hang in there It isn’t that bad.

I have to agree that shorter daylight sucks and I do not like the time change at all, so I’ll give you that one. Yes, summer’s done but there are outdoor activities like hiking, biking, camping or even sitting by a cozy bonfire that are better when it’s cooler, and there’s no insects. If you don’t like ice fishing, it’s going to be months before you can get back on the water. So, I’ll give you that one too.

How about the cold and snow? I don’t know anyone that looks forward to driving on snow covered roads, do you? Then here are people that live for snowmobiling, snow and cross-country skiing along with other winter sports. Cold weather? What can I say, dress in layers and/or stay indoors and put another log on the fire.

Now, one of the biggest complaint/reasons that I hear folks say is, the beautiful peak colors done, trees are leafless, bushes and grass are dormant in the winter and turn brown. Ok, in some locations I would agree, viewing life suspended foliage until spring can be somewhat depressing. Thankfully we still have a tremendous number of green trees that the hibernating tree blends into, so we really don’t notice those dormant trees.

Being Wisconsin is the second most forested state in the country, the GREEN TREES in our woods and lining our roads are evergreens. The white pine is the most common while there are also other types of pines, you will see plenty of spruce and firs. Spruce and firs have individual needles while pine trees have clusters of needles.

If you don’t live in the Northwoods you will never notice this, but evergreens also shed needles in the fall. Trust me, I’ve had tons of needles covering our yard. Those dead brown needles are the old inside needles while the new outer needles are green. Evergreens adapt to colder climates because they continually perform photosynthesis (uses sunlight to covert water and carbon dioxide into oxygen) and unlike leaves that absorbs water, evergreens needles are thick and waxy that retain water.

Sure, the days are shorter, its colder, but for the reasons that some people do not like late fall, let’s take dormant leafless trees off that list and be thankful that the pines, firs and spruces stay green all year. To be honest, I can’t wait for that first snow fall to land on those trees.

There is something about evergreens lightly covered with snow that is not only a beautiful sight but has a calming effect.