Fall Colors Beginning To Show

Expected dates of best color for Fall foliage. Our area is expected
to see the best colors around October15-21.
Image from: DCNR

With the cooler days and nights beginning to occur, leaves around the region are beginning to slowly change color. The different colors of the leaves and the time they change are ultimately affected by the amount of sunlight that the tree receives, the weather, and the amount of soil moisture.  The amount of sunlight is a gradual process and in the fall is a slowly decreasing one.   Soil moisture plays a role and depends on the past Spring, Summer, and early Fall's precipitation. The weather however can be variable with each day and tends to be the deciding factor on how colorful the leaves get. 

According to the DCNR, carotenoids (a type of pigment), gives leaves their yellow color in the Fall and is always present. So even in the worse case scenario, the leaves will at least be a semi-pretty yellow color. The red and vibrant colors that everybody loves are affected by temperature and soil moisture.  To get the beautiful red and purple colors, consecutive warm & sunny days and cool crisp nights are needed.  In term of soil moisture, a warm wet Spring and "favorable" Summer weather are needed. 

Our Spring was a slightly below average on precipitation and above average on temperatures. The Summer was also the same however we have had an above average September for precipitation so the recent rain may help our colors. 

If you have any pictures of Fall foliage, please send them to jordan@crawfordweather.com or post them on our Facebook wall!

If you are interested in reading more about leaves and their changing color check out this pages from the DCNR.

http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/ucmprd2/groups/public/documents/document/dcnr_013179.pdf

Also, check out the weekly Fall foliage reports from the DCNR:

http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/ucmprd2/groups/public/documents/document/dcnr_013180.pdf

If you are interested in reporting Fall foliage, then check out this site:

http://www.yankeefoliage.com/live-fall-foliage-map/