From little acorns --

do new oak trees grow.

A few years ago 'our' oak tree was felled. It was actually our neighbours but it had broken through the boundary wall soon after we moved into this house 29 years ago.
My husband hated all the leaves it created and it did cast a huge shadow over the garden.

On the plus side we enjoyed some of that shade in the summer (when we had one) and the antics of the squirrels. There were very mixed emotions when it went but, due to those squirrels, hundreds of acorns subsequently sprung into saplings the following year all over our back lawn!

This is one we allowed to develop in the border and it is now about 8ft tall - about double the height it was when I photographed it in new growth here https://www.blipfoto.com/entry/1163472
18 months ago.

This year it seems reluctant to give up it's leaves and a beautiful glowing orange at the bottom of the garden.

With today's crisp blue skies I was drawn to take a close up of that colour against the blue.