the story of autumn

I have this wonderful beech tree outside my office window which is a luscious lime green but has just a few yellow leaves on it. It's a gusty day and every now and then a shower of butter-coloured leaves come down. It got me thinking about why I've never shifted north, despite Melbourne's miserable winters. I would miss autumn too much. I was also contemplating the right amount of 'scene setting' in a fantasy. At the moment in Angel Blood (book 2 of the angel trilogy I'm writing) I have virtually no description of place or weather. This is only first draft and I am still discovering the story but its always a vexed question about how much description to insert. Some editors and readers want lots; others are driven mad (and bored) by it. I'm inclined to agree with Garth Nix who says a created world should be discovered through the characters eyes, so I guess the right amount is what is relevant to the characters at them time.