Get Outside in November

Changing Colors

Fall color, with its brilliant reds and oranges, has begun to fade, replaced by the coming winter’s preferred palette of gray, rust, and tan. But don’t despair. There are pops of color here and there, some more welcome than others.

Eastern Witch-Hazel

Eastern witch-hazel is a shrub or small tree, found mostly in Missouri’s eastern Ozark. Its beautiful yellow flowers bloom from November through December.

Cedars and Pines

Cedars and pines bring color to the landscape throughout the winter months. Eastern white pines, which are not native to Missouri, stay green year-round. They were introduced for lumber, landscaping, windbreaks, and erosion control. Our native shortleaf pines are a lovely green and provide shelter for wildlife in the winter. Eastern red cedars remain a deep emerald green until freezing when their needles turn a deep reddish bronze. Female cedars bear cones that become waxy-coated, blue berries, which feed many species of birds.

Bush Honeysuckle

This is the green you don’t want to see. Invasive bush honeysuckle remains green well into December and will green first in spring, making it easy to spot and eliminate. For more information on how to help control this aggressive, problematic shrub, visit short.mdc.mo.gov/ZCi.

Mushroom Mania

If you are in the woods chasing a turkey or a deer, keep your eyes on the ground. There’s a bounty of mushrooms fresh for the plucking. 

Oyster mushrooms, a choice edible, fruits year-round, but may be easier to spot during the fall and winter months. They grow in overlapping clusters on stumps, logs, and trunks of deciduous trees. 

Hen of the woods grows on the base of oak trees through November. A large, edible mushroom, hen of the woods tends to grow in the same spot each year, so take note of your location. 

Chicken of the woods also grows through November in overlapping clusters on dead or dying deciduous trees, stumps, buried roots, or living trees. They are orange to yellow, fleshy, and fan-shaped.

Always be certain of your mushroom identification before consuming. For more information, consult A Guide to Missouri’s Edible and Poisonous Mushrooms at short.mdc.mo.gov/ZNf.

Conservation Near You

Craving more local conservation connections? Find events near you at mdc.mo.gov/events, or catch the latest on social media. Reach out to your closest regional office and learn about events from MDC staff. Outdoor fun awaits. Get out there!

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Natural Events to See This Month

Here’s what’s going on in the natural world.

• Mourning cloak butterflies may appear on warm days.
• Look for bald eagles near lakes, rivers, and marshes.
• Carolina chickadees frequent backyard feeders.