question for Seattle folk

[ksmith]

Are things still green in December--lawns, deciduous trees? Do leaves fall? Does anything brown? I know it can be rainy.

Comments

[lisamantchev.livejournal.com]

We're out on the Peninsula, but the leaves drop from the deciduous trees, leaving lots of bare branches that sort of disappear into the evergreens. Our grass doesn't grow, but stays a pale green until spring warms things up. *just had to mow the back lawn, which was like a jungle*

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

Pale green lawns--good to know. Thanks!

[galeni.livejournal.com]

My lawn stays green, but we also have a lot of moss in it which is gorgeous rich green. Have to rake up the leaves in fall or they make a dark mat which pales the grass beneath. And grey skies -- think x-files light, as it was filmed just north of Seattle in the same climate zone.

One type of deciduous tree here keeps their brown leaves on until the new growth in spring. I'm not sure of the variety.

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

I remember X-Files light. Thanks!

[scarlettina.livejournal.com]

Leaves do fall from the deciduous trees an we have many, but remember that there are a lot of evergreens here. There's a reason Seattle is called the Emerald City. For a good reference to local flora, you might look at Oregon State University's list of common trees for the region (http://oregonstate.edu/trees/name_common.html). One common thing I notice--and kind of love--every year is that in the more urban areas when the leaves fall and it rains, the leaves often stain the sidewalks so that, for a while, it looks like someone stenciled images of brown or red leaves on the pavement.

Couple of other details, because so many writers get it wrong: Seattle is made of hills. It's as hilly as San Francisco, which is why so many neighborhoods are named for hills--Queen Anne Hill, Capitol Hill, Beacon Hill, First Hill, etc. And it's a city of neighborhoods, each with its own very distinctive character. Lastly, it's a city of 40 square miles with relatively concentrated urban core. Outside of that urban core, the city is thick with trees. I live 5 minutes from downtown, and as I look out my window right now, I see more trees than I do houses though they certainly do peek through.

[scarlettina.livejournal.com]

And yes, it rains. And when it doesn't rain, it's overcast. galeni is right when she says to think of the light in The X-Files. Here's the thing though: almost every year I've lived here sometime in January or February, the skies clear and we get one week of gorgeous weather: mild and blue and lovely.

Oh! That's the other thing: Unless we get a freak snow storm, rain is what comes in winter time. It's cold, but it's not parka-cold like back east. People make layering a fashion out here, and it's all very practical: fleece, Gore-tex, scarves, touks (http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=touk) (first definition at the link, sans the pompom).

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

This is super--thanks! I had found info stating that December is the rainiest month, so I did get that right. I'm pegging temps in the 40s.

[galeni.livejournal.com]

Fourties is good. With day and night separated by maybe five degrees tops. And dark by five and until eight am.

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

Good info about length of day. I am trying to stick to the cardinal rule of not pinpointing days/times, at least for this part of the story.

[lrcutter.livejournal.com]

Other details -- hoodies are practical in Seattle. Quite often it doesn't really rain, as much as just kind of mist. I often find I'll put the hood up, walk a couple of blocks, then be able to take it down, then a couple of blocks later, have to put it back up again. I have an umbrella, but I don't need it that often. And I walk everywhere. Feel free to ping me if you want more details (or if you want me to read through a section for veracity.)

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

Thanks--I may take you up on the read-through.

About clothes--I have been sticking with business casual for going downtown, and of course technical for some outdoor-related stuff. Protag will dress up when she has to.

I assume that you walk everywhere because your neighborhood is walkable and all the stores you need are close by?

[lrcutter.livejournal.com]

My neighborhood is extremely walkable. I live on Capitol Hill, up on 15th, near Pike. (Pike Place market is on 1st, I'm on 15th.) I live at the residential end of a business district. Lots of turn of the century mansions are up here as well, particularly close to Volunteer Park. (Just west of the park is a historic district.) Used to be a lot of car dealerships here. Buildings on the first and second floor have huge glass windows, with freight elevators large enough to carry old fashioned cars. Most are still shops of one kind or another, with either office space or lofts above. I have 5 grocery stores in easy walking distance (more further away) restaurants, coffee shops, theatres (plays and movies) bars, dance studios, the community college, etc.

[cepetit.myopenid.com (from livejournal.com)]

Lawns brown up a bit — not like in Illinois, but some — by mid-November and essentially stop growing until March. (I had to mow ours every day...)

Leaves come down off the deciduous trees in late October/early November, but so many trees are coniferous that forested areas are quite green year-round.

The odd thing is that there aren't a lot of native flowering plants in bloom after early September: Anything blooming after that was imported to the area, and is usually kept in a formal garden.