Greenbrier in autumn, part 2

Greenbrier tendril and colorful leaves; click for greater detail.

If it’s dangerous to walk through stands of greenbrier—and it is—at least the plant’s stiff, lobed leaves compensate a little by acting as small sources of warm colors in the fall (and occasionally earlier in the year). In addition to the leaf in this photograph that’s clearly attached via a red stalk to the viny part of the plant, the orange glow in the background comes from another greenbrier leaf far enough away to be out of focus (and to appear rounder than it really is, thanks to the way lenses render such things).

I took this picture on the partly sunny afternoon of December 17 in the relatively new “panhandle” of St. Edward’s Park that’s on the east side of Spicewood Springs Rd. in my part of Austin. For more information, including a state-clickable map showing the places in the southeastern United States where Smilax bona-nox grows, you can visit the USDA website.

© 2011 Steven Schwartzman