The weather has finally cooled off, but in the middle of this past week spring violets were blooming in the front yard. And not far away from them a big burning bush (Euonymus alatus), a shrub originally from northeast Asia that doesn’t show red until the fall, was also blooming.

Burning bushes normally turn red at this time of the year, but the violets were reacting to abnormal fall warmth.

There are lots of full-sized burning bushes in gardens and wild areas but not all of them were planted by current property owners or homeowners. They germinate easily from seeds dropped by birds or other animals that eat their fruits, which is why some states — including Pennsylvania — have outlawed them as new plantings . They form big patches that prevent native plants from growing.

There’s anot

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