The Colors of the Season

Mostly everyone loves this time of year, including myself. This is in part because of the refreshing cooler weather giving us a reprieve from such a blustering hot summer, the Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Lattes (to be honest, my all time favorite coffee drink besides my go-to Americano...but it HAS to be with soy milk. Check it!!), there is Halloween, carving pumpkins, 'tis almost the time for snow to fall, and most of all, we love the smell of Fall with the beautiful array of colors of the leaves on trees.
There has been talk of this Fall not being as much of a 'colorful year' as Falls past. This is in part true based on the extreme heat this past Summer and the lack of rain we have had (as a whole, not as of recent) in the past few months.These conditions cause the trees to 'shutdown' for the Winter earlier and faster and leaves have been falling before they have had the chance to change color. The next issue hindering the change of color are freezing temperatures. Luckily for us (in New Jersey in particular), most places have been a little on the warm side, flirting with freezing temperatures, but not quite getting there. Freezing temperatures and frost conditions essentially kill the processes within the leaves which lead to lack of color. However, much like every other year, this year will be beautiful (from what is left).
The colors of the season are upon us!


Much life every weather system and pattern, there are key ingredients, if you will, to make the Fall colors just perfect and bright. According to the U.S. National Arboretum, a wet growing season followed by a dry autumn filled with sunny days and cool frostless nights results in the brightest fall colors. We have part of that recipe this year, so there is still hope for us!


The process of the leaves changing their colors is quite fascinating.
There are four (4) primary pigment colors that leaves change to. If you look outside, you will see these colors and this is the reason why there are not hundreds of colors of leaves. Here is a little plant biology for you; with in the leaves there is chlorophyll, which  is the green pigment (responsible for the green color in leaves) found in most plants and algae. Chlorophyll is absolutely vital for plants to obtain energy from sunlight. Which is otherwise known as photosynthesis. Other chemical pigments that contribute the leaf colors are the following: xanthophylls for the yellow pigments. Xanthophylls are found in most plants where they work with chlorophyll to modulate light energy. Carotenoids (think carrots and the orange fruit) for the orange pigments.
Carotenoids naturally occur in chloroplasts in plants and in some organisms like bacteria and fungus. In general, carotenoide absorb blue light. In algae and plants, they serve to absorb light energy for photosynthesis and they protect the chlorophyll from photodamage. The last pigment are anthocyanins, responsible for the purple and red pigments. These are water-soluble pigments that appear purple, red, and blue according to the pH. These belong to a 'parent class' called flavonoids; in which they are odorless and flavorless. Anthocyanins occur in all tissues of plants including leaves, stems, roots, flowers, and fruits. In flowers and fruit in particular, the bright purples and reds are adaptive traits for attracting pollinators. In fruit, the colorful skins attract the attention of animals which may eat the fruit and could disperse the seeds.

The cool part about all of these pigments; these are found in the bodies of animals from their food, which in turn helps us humans, and are derived from plant sources. For example, crack open an egg and see the egg yolk color, that is color is contributed to ingested xanthophyll. In humans, carotenoids act as antioxidants (through alpha-, beta-, gamma-carotene have vitamin A activity). Which means they can be converted to retinal that is a chemical that is bound to proteins that is chemical basis for animal vision; remember to eat your carrots!


Replenishment of the chlorophyll is a must for trees because sunlight causes it to fade over time. In the Fall season, as the daytime light becomes shorter and nights grow longer, trees begin to prepare for the Winter and the next growing season by blocking off the flow to and from a leaf's stem. This process stops the green chlorophyll from being replenished and causes the green leaf color to fade thus emerges the brilliant Fall color hues.


Now, most of you who know me, know how I feel about The Weather Channel. However, I must say, I've been searching for an image for a good map that will show the Northeast Fall Foliage.

The New Jersey/ New York area is near peak with approximately 50-75% change in color. The peak in foliage color is well Northeast as of now. For Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York, the peak time will be later this October to early November.


Enjoy watching the beauty of nature!


~ V.S.