Fall In The Gardens

The Landscapes of Canada Gardens are to be found at the Canadian Museum of Nature, where plants, trees, grasses, flowers, and shrubs from four ecosystems are to be found. I like to photograph the place once each season, and was here in October around sunrise on a day that was mostly cloudy. I approached towards the first area: Boreal Forest. This ecosystem covers a vast part of the country, and the trees and shrubs and other plantings here are reflective of that.

One of the trees of the Boreal Forest is the tamarack. They look like evergreens, but aren't. They are deciduous conifer trees, with the needle-like leaves turning gold in late fall before dropping. This tree was just starting that process.

The next ecosystem represented here is Prairie Grassland. The tall grasses and flowers of the Prairies grow well in an Ottawa summer, and at this point of the year are done, waiting on winter snows.

The path winds beneath a sculpture of an iceberg. This was created by the late Canadian artist and inventor Bill Lishman. 

Using the sculpture, I framed this shot of fall colours beyond on the path. The rocks on either side of the path reflect another ecosystem: Arctic Tundra.

This is taken from the sidewalk, with the museum and sculpture in dramatic light.

Plants of the Arctic Tundra are found among the rocks and stones on this side of the path, and tend to grow well over the summer.

The path beckoned me on.

Dense fall colours in the Prairie Grasslands drew my eye.

The last ecosystem is Mammoth Steppe, featuring various plants that have been around since the time of the woolly mammoth. A family of three mammoths in statue form are at the side of the path, with the plants around them. Beyond, the Queens Lantern contains a scale model of the Moon.

I finish with this look at the mammoths, and the plants around them in their fall glory.