Fall Foliage

Each year, the lush green of summer turns into the drabness of winter as trees lose their leaves. But the transition in fall typically offers a spectacular panorama of color. For some New England states, it’s a major economic factor. “Leaf peeping,” where tourists gather to see the fall colors, is a multibillion dollar industry. The shift from summer green to warm autumn hues is purely biological, so the beauty is serendipitous.

Although there’s variation from one autumn to the next, an overall pattern repeats itself every year because the display is part of a tree’s annual life cycle. Deciduous trees, primarily the hardwoods, are only active during the warm, freeze-free growing season. Leaf buds will expand in spring, and new leaves will emerge as the air warms. The “job” of the leaves is to gather the abundant sunlight of summer and use this energy to produce food: sugar. The leaves have a large surface area, better for collecting more light,