The woods at Paxton are turning to a rich tapestry of yellows, golds and reds. We think the most striking of all is the brilliant vermilion foliage of Acer Rubrum, the red maple. Could anything be more cheerful? A native of North America where varieties of this tree are common, it had healing properties for native Americans and early European settlers found they could use the bark for dyes and ink. There are several small garden varieties with spectacular Autumn colour, including October Glory, Red Sunset and Autumn Flame – you get the picture – and this tree even has red flowers in the Spring.